www.qqmsports.com
Open in
urlscan Pro
2606:4700:3030::ac43:9e19
Public Scan
Submitted URL: https://qqmsports.com/
Effective URL: https://www.qqmsports.com/
Submission: On June 17 via api from US — Scanned from DE
Effective URL: https://www.qqmsports.com/
Submission: On June 17 via api from US — Scanned from DE
Form analysis 1 forms found in the DOM
Name: search — POST https://www.qqmsports.com/zb_system/cmd.php?act=search
<form name="search" method="post" class="dropdown searchForm" action="https://www.qqmsports.com/zb_system/cmd.php?act=search">
<input class="search-input" name="q" type="text" placeholder="Search..." required="required">
<button><i class="icon-fangdajing"></i></button>
</form>Text Content
* Home * Sports News * MMN Sports * KID Sports * Football World * Basketball Hub * Tennis Life * MMA Arena * Cycling Trails * Olympic Legacy * TELL8888888 HOT Search * Extreme Sports Channel * Football World * Basketball Hub * Home * Sports News * MMN Sports * KID Sports * Football World * Basketball Hub * Tennis Life * MMA Arena * Cycling Trails * Olympic Legacy * TELL8888888 QQM FOOTBALL WORLD QQM Football World is your comprehensive online destination for the latest football news, analysis, and resources, providing a global perspective on the beautiful game. QQM World FOOTBALL WORLD BASKETBALL HUB TENNIS LIFE MMA ARENA CYCLING TRAILS OLYMPIC LEGACY EXTREME SPORTS FOOTBALL WORLD BASKETBALL HUB TENNIS LIFE MMA ARENA CYCLING TRAILS OLYMPIC LEGACY EXTREME SPORTS FOOTBALL WORLD BASKETBALL HUB TENNIS LIFE MMA ARENA CYCLING TRAILS OLYMPIC LEGACY EXTREME SPORTS * HOT Countries： * United StatesHOT * China * Brazil * United Kingdom * Germany * France * Spain * Russia * Australia * Japan QQM SPORTS EXCHANGE PLATFORM QQM SportsQQM Sports Exchange Platform is a comprehensive online hub for sports enthusiasts, offering real-time sports news, betting options, and interactive features to enhance the sports viewing experience. FOOTBALL WORLD BASKETBALL HUB EXTREME SPORTS MMA ARENA QQM Extreme Sports Channel QQM Extreme Sports Channel Celtics-Mavericks: Results from regular-season matchups Celtics-Mavericks: How to watch, what to expect – 2024 NBA Finals Mavs' Dereck Lively II (neck) status now available for Game 5 * Celtics-Mavericks: Results from regular-season matchups Mavericks star Luka Doncic logged a triple-double in both games against the Celtics this season, but Boston won the series. • Download the NBA App There’s an old saying about past performances not guaranteeing future results. The Dallas Mavericks hope that’s the case heading into the 2024 NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics. Both teams last met in January and again in March. The results: Celtics won the regular-season series, 2-0. While the two games provided a glimpse at certain schematics, it was just that: a glimpse. Lineups have changed due to trades, injuries and coaching decisions. Rotations will rotate differently. Not to mention, peaking at the right time is what matters most. Of the last 10 NBA champions, only four won the regular-season series against the opponent they faced in the Finals (total record: 4-2-4). With that context in mind, it’s still worth glancing at the only head-to-head showdowns between Boston and Dallas this season. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- First matchup (Jan. 22) The score Celtics 119, Mavericks 110 Player stats Jayson Tatum: 39 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 stealsJaylen Brown: 34 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocksLuka Doncic: 33 points, 18 rebounds, 13 assists, 2 stealsKyrie Irving: 23 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals The context: This game was the second of a back-to-back for Boston. Tatum was chilly in Houston the night before, shooting 4-for-17. The Celtics still managed to win that game and followed up with another win with a far different Tatum. He and Brown combined for 73 points against the Mavs. It was, to that point, the most impressive 1-2 punch of the season by the duo as they outclassed Doncic (who had a triple-double) and Irving. That said, help was on the way for Dallas. Two weeks later, the Mavericks swung a midseason trade that changed the scope of their season. P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford were acquired from the Hornets and Wizards, respectively, giving the Mavericks a pair of rim finishers and rebounders – their biggest weaknesses at the time. Jayson Tatum and the Celtics defeat the Mavericks, 119-110, on Jan. 22. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Second matchup (March 1) The score Celtics 138, Mavericks 110 Player stats Tatum: 32 points, 8 reboundsBrown: 25 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assistsDoncic: 37 points, 12 rebounds, 11 assistsIrving: 19 points, 4 rebounds The context: The romp was secured when the Celtics outscored the Mavs 36-20 in a runaway fourth quarter. For the second time this season, the Celtics won despite a triple-double from Doncic. And for the second time, the Tatum-Brown combo was too much for the Mavs to handle. The duo combined for 57 points and had help from Kristaps Porzingis, who added 24. The Celtics shot 55.3% from the floor, 48.8% from 3-point range and essentially were the picture of efficiency. Boston won for the 28th time in 31 home games. The Mavs would lose three straight games before coach Jason Kidd made a key decision – moving Gafford into the starting lineup at center. The Mavs won 16 of their last 20 games to end the regular season. The Celtics win their 10th consecutive game as they defeat the Mavericks, 138-110 on March 1. * Celtics-Mavericks: How to watch, what to expect – 2024 NBA Finals Luka Doncic and Jayson Tatum go head to head in the 2024 NBA Finals. One swept, the other swept like gentlemen. It was as if the Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks were eager to get on with this and wanted as much prep time as possible before Game 1 of the 2024 NBA Finals on June 6. Boston was the NBA’s best team by record all season, running away with the East and claiming home court for as long as they need it, including this round. Dallas went 50-32, which it’s worth noting would have tied for second in the East with New York. That still was 14 games off the Celtics’ pace, though, and good for only the No. 5 seed in the West. That had the Mavericks playing from down under to beat the Clippers, the Thunder and the Timberwolves, all while looking more like a title threat at each step. Boston mostly stayed above the fray as favorites, which brought criticism for lone missteps against the Heat and the Cavaliers and allowed some critics to poke at forward Jayson Tatum’s fire. The Celtics took both games against Dallas this season. They won 119-110 on the Mavericks’ court on Jan. 22, then beat the Mavs again 138-110 on March 1 in Boston. This is Boston’s 23rd trip to the Finals. Dallas has made it twice before, this one coming 13 years after its 2011 upset championship over the first edition of Miami’s “super team”. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Series schedule Here’s how to watch the Celtics vs. Mavericks Finals: All times Eastern Daylight Time Game 1: Mavericks vs. Celtics, June 6 (8:30 p.m., ABC) Game 2: Mavericks vs. Celtics, June 9 (8 p.m., ABC) Game 3: Celtics vs. Mavericks, June 12 (8:30 p.m., ABC) Game 4: Celtics vs. Mavericks, June 14 (8:30 p.m., ABC) Game 5: Mavericks vs. Celtics, June 17 (8:30 p.m., ABC)* Game 6: Celtics vs. Mavericks, June 20 (8:30 p.m., ABC)* Game 7: Mavericks vs. Celtics, June 23 (8 p.m., ABC)* * = If necessary -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Top storyline Battle of the backcourts. It’s been a claim for a couple weeks this postseason, that in Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving Dallas arguably has the most potent offensive backcourt in NBA history. Why argue now? Let’s stipulate to that and enjoy a strength vs. strength matchup with Boston’s starting guards. Jrue Holiday and Derrick White both earned spots on the All-Defensive Second Team, and have built their reputations over years of making offensive counterparts uncomfortable. They’re disruptive and sticky, capable of ball pressure that can throw off even Doncic’s late-clock decisions or Irving’s highlight finishes. Going the other way, Irving has looked more diligent this spring, while Doncic mostly uses defensive possessions to recharge. In the two regular-season meetings, the Dallas tandem totaled 112 points, 51% of their team’s output. Holiday and White scored 47, a pittance by comparison. But all the other Celtics outscored all the other Mavs 210-108. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Keep your eyes on The Porzingis factor. Boston center Kristaps Porzingis went down in the first round against Miami with a right soleus (calf) strain. No one expected to see him in the semis against Cleveland and the East Finals didn’t last long enough for it to become a possibility. Now he might be more of a necessity given the problems posed by Dallas’ bigs. Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II are vertical rim-runners who play as if on pogo sticks, always available to flush a Doncic lob. Derrick Jones Jr. and P.J. Washington have upped their production in the postseason. That’s a lot to handle up front, and Boston’s Al Horford – game and effective the past two rounds – is 38 years old and in need of help. Porzingis, at 7-foot-2 and 240, averaged 20 points and two blocked shots, both of which could help the Celtics. He’s a big body in the paint, he’s a three-level scorer and he deepens coach Joe Mazzulla’s rotation after five weeks of postseason grind. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 more thing to watch for each team For the Celtics: Counting by threes. Boston led the league all season in 3-pointers taken and made, hitting them at the second-best percentage. That tactic has continued to pay off in the playoffs, with their average of 14.6 makes and 39.8 attempts topping all others. When they’ve hit 14 or more in a game this spring, they’re 9-0, and they have gotten up 40 or more attempts in half of their postseason games. The Mavericks have been solid, just not stellar from the arc. They’ve averaged 12.4 makes and 33.7 attempts, are 6-1 when making 14 or more, but have launched as many as 40 only once in 16 games. For the Mavericks: Irving back in Boston. Porzingis isn’t the only one headed into a matchup with his former team. Irving’s two seasons in Boston (2017-19) were more emotional than Porzingis’ stint in Dallas, marked by more individual success (two All-Star berths) than team satisfaction. He has been booed and heckled constantly since leaving for Brooklyn in 2019, and after he stomped on the Celtics’ midcourt logo in a 2021 playoff visit, a fan threw a water bottle at him. Irving has been a model team member with Dallas, avoiding off-court controversies while focusing on his contributions. But that’s not the Kyrie that Boston fans will target starting with Game 1 Thursday (8:30 ET, ABC). -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 key number to know 4.9 — The Mavs have made 4.9 corner 3-pointers per game, what would be the fourth-highest playoff mark in the 28 years for which we have play-by-play data. Among individuals, P.J. Washington (28-for-70, 40.0%) and Derrick Jones Jr. (18-for-38, 47.4%) rank first and second in total corner 3-pointers. Washington’s 28 makes are the most for any player in the last six postseasons and five shy of Bruce Bowen’s record of 33 in 2007. Jones’ 47.4% on corner 3s is up from just 33.8% in the regular season. The Celtics’ defense does not yield many corner 3s, just 1.5 makes per game (fewest in the playoffs) through the conference finals. Only 18% of their opponents’ 3-point attempts, the lowest opponent rate in the playoffs, have come from the corners. They also had the lowest opponent rate (21%) in the regular season, when the Mavs were just 4-for-16 from the corners in their two head-to-head meetings. Those four corner 3s (and the 2.0 per game) were tied for the fewest that Dallas had against any opponent. — John Schuhmann -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The pick Celtics in six. The Mavericks were six games under .500 last season and only 25-21 in late January. Only Doncic, among starters, remains from 16 months ago. So whatever expectation Dallas or its fans hold for the franchise’s second championship pales in comparison to Boston’s for No. 18. This is the sixth time in eight years the Celtics have reached at least the conference finals and their second Finals in three years. Star wings Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have achieved almost everything short of a ring. Coach Joe Mazzulla’s job status was shaky at this time in 2023 and Horford can’t wait to get off that “most playoff games without a title” list. Urgency alone doesn’t win championships, but urgency + talent + roster depth + experience + continuity + home court should be enough. * * * Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X. The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA, its clubs or Warner Bros. Discovery. * Mavs' Dereck Lively II (neck) status now available for Game 5 Dereck Lively II is averaging 8.5 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game in the playoffs. • Download the NBA App Dallas Mavericks center Dereck Lively II, who sat out Game 4 with a sprained neck, has been upgraded to available for Thursday’s Game 5 vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves (8:30 ET, TNT). Lively was injured in the second quarter of Dallas’ 116-107 Game 3 victory but missed the Mavs’ 105-100 Game 4 loss to Minnesota because of the injury. Lively avoided the concussion protocol after holding his head while staying down on the court for several minutes. Dereck Lively II will be available for Game 5 tonight pic.twitter.com/4dSqvObU2V — NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 30, 2024 The first-round Draft pick out of Duke has been a big boost inside for the Mavericks, forming a tandem with Daniel Gafford that outplayed Minnesota’s big front line of 7-foot-1 Karl-Anthony Towns and 7-foot-1 Rudy Gobert while Dallas took a 3-0 lead in the series. The Wolves staved off elimination in Game 4 but still face a 3-1 series deficit. Lively is averaging 8.5 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.1 blocks per game and is shooting 65.3% in the 2024 playoffs. The Mavs tried to make up for Lively’s absence in Game 4 with the return of Maxi Kleber, who had been out with a separated right shoulder since he took a hard fall in the deciding Game 6 of the first-round series against the LA Clippers on May 3. Kleber, who was wearing a protective sleeve on the shoulder, scored two points in 13 minutes. He isn’t quite the rim protector or pick-and-roll player that Lively and Gafford are, but he offers a solid inside presence. On offense, the Mavs mostly count on Kleber as a 3-point threat. The 32-year-old German was 10-for-18 from deep against the Clippers and is a 40% 3-point shooter in 37 career playoff games. Kleber made a layup in the second quarter but was short on both 3-point attempts. In his first game this postseason without Lively, Gafford made all six of his shots for 12 points with eight rebounds. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report. * What's at stake in Game 5 of West Finals? • Download the NBA App This article was pulled from our Starting 5 Newsletter, a daily look at all things NBA. To get the newsletter in your inbox every morning, subscribe here. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- No team has ever won a best-of-seven series after trailing 3-0. In NBA history, 155 teams have tried … and 155 have fallen short. The Wolves are team No. 156. Minnesota, however, became just the 61st club of those 156 teams to avoid a sweep by winning Game 4 in Dallas. Now, they head home with a chance to beat the odds again in Game 5 (8:30 ET, TNT). 15 of 60: Of the 60 prior teams to win Game 4 when trailing 3-0 in the series, 15 (25%) have won Game 54 of 15: Four of those 15 teams (26.7%) won Game 5 at home4 of 35: 35 prior teams have gone down 3-0 in the Conference Finals, and only four (11.4%) have forced a Game 6 Minnesota's defensive pressure on the perimeter and the play of Karl-Anthony Towns could shape Game 5. Wolves Against The Wall: Minnesota is 3-0 in elimination games this postseason, with wins in Games 6 and 7 against Denver plus Tuesday’s victory in Dallas — and their defense excels with their season on the line. In those three elimination games, Minnesota has posted a 90.4 defensive rating (points allowed per 100 possessions) compared to their 114.6 defensive rating in every other game this postseasonAgainst Denver: The Wolves held Denver to 79 ppg in their two elimination games – 26.6 points below their Playoff average entering the contests (106.6)Against Dallas in Game 4: The Wolves held the Mavs to 100 points – 7.4 points below their Playoff average entering the contest (107.4)Home Stand: The last time Minnesota faced elimination at home (Game 6 vs. Denver), the Wolves won 115-70 – the largest winning margin in a Playoff game since 2015 Historic Hurdle: Minnesota’s already achieved a feat no other team has, as they handed Kyrie Irving his first career loss in a potential closeout game (14-1), and the Mavs know they’ll have to match the Wolves’ intensity to close them out. 🗣️ Mavs Coach Jason Kidd: “We put ourselves in a position to win the game… but you got to give Minnesota credit, they came out and fought and found a way to win.”🗣️ Luka: “That game is on me. I just didn’t give enough energy. They won one game, we just need to focus on the next one.”🗣️ Kyrie: “It’s a new space. Now we just gotta deal with this loss and get ready for Minnesota and enjoy that ride there because it’s going to be hostile.” texas a&mexico football team lineupfootball games english premier leagueculminatepromotioneachtourcardsplay by play football gamem aggies football schedule QQM Extreme Sports Channel QQM Extreme Sports Channel SIA Collective's Devlin Carter details meeting with Kyrie Irving’s team Hornets' Oubre Jr. out 4-6 weeks with torn ligament in left hand Pistons' Marvin Bagley III to miss "extended time" with hand injury * SIA Collective's Devlin Carter details meeting with Kyrie Irving’s team Since Nike made the decision to end its relationship with KyrieIrving and discontinue his signature shoeafter he shared the documentary "Hebrews To Negroes," many brandshave reportedly reached out to his camp to attempt to lure him intojoining them — Adidas, New Balance and PUMA to name afew. During a postgame conference while discussing being a shoecompany free agent, the lone company Irving has publiclyacknowledged as a possibility was SIA Collective. In addition, heexplained that he is not in a rush and wants to take his time tofind the right place so he doesn’t duplicate a similar situation asthe one he had with Nike, who he referred to as “that otherbrand.” “Number one, I’m in no rush to make any business decisions rightnow…. I just want to take my time," Irving said on Dec. 28 afterthe Brooklyn Nets' win over the Atlanta Hawks. "In terms of SIACollective — great brand, great brothers, great operation teambehind the scenes. But again, I'm looking for a home where we canbuild a huge marketplace and I can have some ownership, and thattakes time to build. So I’m willing to stay patient, but work withpeople that are willing to work with me. “SIA Collective has been a great brand to converse with, but Idon’t want to settle with one. I think I just want to keep myoptions open, look for ownership and enjoy the free agency for alittle bit. It’s been a long time coming, and then, I think thereare a lot of details that are going to come out in the future aboutwhat was actually going on. And I think once my platform iscreated, when I can do that, then we'll share that. But shout outto SIA Collective and everybody that's been recruiting me duringthe process. I’m appreciative. But I’m definitely not going to goback into a similar contract that I was in — or any type ofsituation or circumstance that I was in or similar to what I was at— with that other brand.” Kyrie Irving was asked about his sneakerfree agency & touched upon what went wrong with Nike"There are a lot of details that are going to come out in thefuture about what was actually going on. I'm not going to go into asimilar contract I was with at the other brand" pic.twitter.com/K8AUxOEXnh — Nets Videos (@SNYNets) December 29, 2022 Since then, many have been asking: Who is SIA Collective, andwhat are they about? On the latest episode of the TheRematch, I had the opportunity to sit down with the founder ofSIA Collective, Devlin Carter, who founded the company in 2019. SIACollective, which stands for Somewhere in America, is anindependent, Black-owned shoe and apparel company. Almost immediately after Nike dropped the Nets star, Carter tookto social media to make a public plea to Kyrie to sign with SIACollective instead of Adidas or PUMA or New Balance or any of theother companies that have reached out following the Nike divorce.The main theme of his pitch is that he is open to offering Irvingthe very ownership that he expressed is his desire. In Carter'swords: "When you have that nobody can drop you because they don’tagree with something you do or say.” During our interview, Carter detailed his meeting with Kyrie’sentire team, and expressed why he feels SIA Collective would be theperfect fit for Irving. Etan Thomas: So, you made the video initially afterNike decided to essentially drop Kyrie Irving making the plea tohim to consider joining SIA Collective, and the response from thevideo was that a lot of people in the community started taggingKyrie in your video to try to connect you with Kyrie, so walk usthrough what happened after that point. Devlin Carter: :Sure. So after I made thevideo, I got a DM of Kyrie’s agent Shetellia Riley Irving saying,'Hey, send me an e-mail at your earliest convenience.' So I sentthe e-mail and they responded asking when I was available for aZoom call. I responded, 'Whenever you guys are, I’m open. Whatevery’all want (laughing). We can do it right now if you want.' "So we had it scheduled for Friday — not this Friday that justpassed, but the prior Friday. So we had that set up, and in betweenthat meeting, I also sent them a shoe that we’ve been working oncalled the EVO Bounce, which is a performance basketball shoe. So Isent them some images of it. I had my photo shop guy mock it up ina Brooklyn Nets design and put a No. 11 on it. And (Shetellia) hitme right back and asked, 'When could you get us this shoe?' So Iexplained to them that, right now, we were in the sole process. Sowe’re making the sole and adding the technology to it, but I said,'As soon as we’re done, I’ll send you as many samples as youneed.'" Etan: So they had a quick response? Carter: "Yes, and I can tell by how quicklythey responded that they liked the design of the shoe. That’s onething that I don’t have any issues or concerns about is my abilityto design a dope looking basketball shoe for Kyrie. So then, fromthere, we had the meeting on the Zoom call, and it’s me, his agentShetellia Riley Irving, Kyrie’s dad (Drederick) and anothergentleman who is Kyrie’s brand manager. So we’re all on the Zoomand Shetellia is quarterbacking the call. And she tells thegentlemen to tell me about themselves, so basically, they’repitching me. And I’m thinking, 'Wow, I think I should be pitchingmyself to y’all.'" Etan: Right, right, but they’re telling youabout who they are. Carter: "Yeah. So Kyrie’s dad — super cool,super down to earth. He’s telling me how he worked in finance andis from the Bronx. And the brand manager told me how he startedwith Kyrie and (how) he used to work with Nike, but left Nike towork solely with Kyrie, and how he helps his sister (Asia) with herbranding and whatnot. And Shetellia tells me how she worked at BETand launching Power 105.1 (in New York). And then, they asked mehow I started, my whole background in fashion design. Then, theystarted pitching questions." * Hornets' Oubre Jr. out 4-6 weeks with torn ligament in left hand According to Shams Charania of TheAthletic, Charlotte Hornets forward Kelly Oubre Jr. willundergo surgery on a torn ligament in his left hand and miss 4-to-6weeks. Oubre had been playing through the injury since the firstweek of the season and is now opting for surgery. Sources: Hornets forward Kelly Oubre Jr.will undergo surgery on a torn ligament in his left hand and miss4-to-6 weeks. Oubre – averaging a career high 20.2 points –suffered the injury in the first week of the season and has beenplaying through the pain on his shooting hand. — Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) January 3, 2023 Oubre had been averaging a career-high 20.2 points and 5.1assists on the season for the Hornets. * Pistons' Marvin Bagley III to miss "extended time" with hand injury Detroit Pistons forward Marvin Bagley III has sustained aright-hand injury is expected to miss extended time, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.Bagley III is undergoing further evaluation to determine nextsteps. Detroit Pistons forward Marvin Bagley IIIhas sustained a right-hand injury is expected to miss extendedtime, sources tell ESPN. Bagley III is undergoing furtherevaluation to determine next steps. — Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) January 3, 2023 Bagley III is averaging 10.6 points and 5.9 rebounds this seasonfor the Pistons. * G League docuseries 'The Break' spotlighting unique paths to NBA In recent years, the NBA G League has grown in popularity. Teams areutilizing the benefits it provides, players are taking advantage ofthe opportunity it presents and fans are tuning in to see talentswho will eventually be gracing the big stage in theAssociation. Due to the increasing demand of more coverage around the leagueitself and the top-prospect-laden Ignite program, the G League hasaligned with The General Insurance to produce an eight-partdocuseries called "The Break." Two shows in since premiering last month, "The Break" will dropnew episodes roughly every three weeks and conclude in April. Theproject features rising Ignite star ScootHenderson, 2020-21 G League Rookie of the Year Mac McClung andlongtime veteran and two-time NBA champion Norris Cole. In theseepisodes, you're taken both behind the scenes and on the court withexclusive footage that illustrates these players' respectivepaths to the NBA. To learn more about the series, the process behind it and more,Basketball News discussed "The Break" with G League Head ofPartnerships George Wilson. The amount of attention that was on Scoot Henderson andVictor Wembanyama this fall before the season began was historic.Was that the basis for the idea to start the show? If not, whatwas? George Wilson: "We decided to create thisdocuseries with The General so we could bring our fans closer tothe game by following our players as they strive to realize theirgoal of making it to the NBA. "But, the attention surrounding Scoot and Victor — thepresumptive top two picks in the 2023 NBA Draft — is certainlyundeniable, and they served as the perfect starting point for thisseries in the first episode. Beyond Scoot and Victor, the basis indeveloping this series was to foster deeper connections between ourfans and the players around the league. The G League is filled withincredible talent, improving year after year, with almost half ofNBA players on opening night rosters having played in the G League.So we are glad this docuseries could further shine a light on theirjourneys." Could you give some background as to why you chose ScootHenderson, Mac McClung and Norris Cole to be featured on the showthroughout the eight-part series in particular? Wilson: "Scoot, Mac and Norris are all playingin the G League, but each is on a different path to the next levelin the NBA. They really represent the diversity in the league, andthat it is a place for players at different stages of their careersto achieve their dreams. Whether it’s through a likely top pick inthe 2023 NBA Draft in Scoot Henderson, the 2021-22 Kia NBA G LeagueRookie of the Year in Mac McClung or a two-time NBA Champion inNorris Cole, we sought to effectively showcase that this leaguedoesn’t have one linear path. The NBA G League is filled withhundreds of players who have such compelling stories, all lookingto achieve a common goal, and we’re glad our fans can be a part oftheir journeys through this docuseries." What were each of those three players' reactions whenyou told them they'd be a part of this series? Was there any inputon their end idea-wise? Wilson: "The players were very excited to befeatured in the series and bring our fans along the way throughoutthe season. They have input throughout, from start to finish.Before each episode, we work with them as they offer anysuggestions. For example, earlier this season, Mac’s family came toa game and nearly 30 of his family members and friends wore “Mac”T-shirts in the crowd, so when Mac gave us a heads up, we wanted tobe sure to capture that as part of the episode. Our job incollaboration with the team at Blue Cup Productions is to ensurethat we’re authentic in the way in which we feature our players andpersonalities. So their input and ideas are critical to thisproject’s overall success." Why is it important for the G League to share the insidetrack to these players/teams off the court? Wilson: "We continue to hear from our fans thatthey are seeking increased access to our players and teams. Thisdocuseries allows us to meet our fans where they are, offering themcontinued compelling content to engage with our league and players.A player’s path through the G League can often be overlooked, so itwas important through our collaboration with The General toshowcase these players’ incredible journeys and the amount of workthey put in throughout the season to achieve their goals. Theleague and its players also continue to garner added attention eachseason, so we are glad this docuseries met the demand we saw fromour fans in wanting increased content." To that point, do you feel like this docuseries willhelp illustrate the G League's growing popularity? Also, why do youthink so many people have taken notice of it in these recentseasons? Wilson: "Our hope is that the docuseriesshowcases the league’s growing popularity and the tremendous talentfilled in this league. The G League’s growth, particularly over thepast few years, has truly been remarkable. As mentioned, nearlyhalf of the players on NBA opening night rosters played in the GLeague. Ten years ago, that percentage sat at roughly 19%. Thatalso extends to coaches, with six NBA head coaches having spenttime on G League benches, and more than 75 NBA assistant coacheswere assistant or head coaches in the G League. "The G League has also helped the NBA infrastructure grow, andwe have always been an effective testing ground for NBA rules andprocedures. The Coach’s Challenge and the 14-second reset onoffensive rebounds were initially used in our league and are now astaple of every NBA game. This past week, we employed Final TargetScores at the 2022 AT&T NBA G League Winter Showcase, and thedata from those finishes is extremely valuable in helpingpotentially enhance the game experience for fans and players. We’vealso been using Final Target Scores throughout the regular season,as every G League game that goes into overtime ends on a targetscore. "Certainly, we’ve seen a significant amount of attentionrecently surrounding our NBA G League Ignite team with the numberof talented players from that team now in the NBA. Additionally,the Capitanes’ first season in Mexico City marks an importantmilestone for the G League and the NBA in our ongoing commitment togrowing the game across Latin America. "We’re looking forward to ongoing momentum throughout the restof the season and beyond, with additional players landing on NBArosters, and our league continuing to serve as a hub forinnovation." cricket world cup top 4world cup nyc 2026 ticketsbasketball equipmentcanada football teamshow many teams won the cricket world cupbuy cricket world cup ticketsfifa club world cup participating teamsnotre dame football forumfifa 21 club world cupis messi going to play the 2026 world cup QQM Extreme Sports Channel QQM Extreme Sports Channel Texas man reclaims world’s oldest skydiver record at 106 years old | Guinness World Records The Olympic skier from the Caribbean who inked tattoos to fund her comeback | Sport Patagonia and The North Face: saving the world – one puffer jacket at a time | Retail industry * Texas man reclaims world’s oldest skydiver record at 106 years old | Guinness World Records Alfred ‘Al’ Blaschke, who first broke the Guinness World Record for at 103 in 2020, reached an altitude of 9,000ft in November Ramon Antonio Vargas Mon 13 May 2024 10.00 BST Share After retaking – at age 106 – the Guinness World Records (GWR) mark for oldest person to tandem skydive out of an airplane, Alfred “Al” Blaschke hailed his feat as living evidence that “everyone is more capable than they think”. “If you think you can’t, you’re just underestimating yourself,” the resident of Georgetown, Texas, remarked. “[You] just need to make the decision to try.” Blaschke’s motivational comments came in a write-up published recently by the GWR website, whose organization is known for maintaining a database of more than 40,000 world records. ‘It was wonderful up there’: 104-year-old aims for world’s oldest skydiver record Read more The particular record which Blaschke has now captured twice made international news because of an entirely different person altogether this past fall. On 1 October, 104-year-old Dorothy Hoffner of Chicago made a tandem skydive aimed at landing her the world’s record for essentially being the oldest person ever to jump from a plane. But eight days later, while awaiting Guinness’s official certification of her achievement, Hoffner died in her sleep at her senior living community. Blaschke then soared to the skies on a plane the morning of 27 November 2023. After reaching an altitude of 9,000ft (2.7km) over Fentress, Texas, Blaschke attached himself to a skydiving instructor and jumped out of the plane into a free fall with him. The pair then safely parachuted the final 5,500ft (1.7km) to the ground while his children, grandchildren, journalists and government officials cheered on below. It was the third occasion that Blaschke had gone tandem skydiving. His second time was in 2020 – when he was 103 years and 181 days old, jumped out of a plane at 14,000ft (4.3kme) to celebrate his twin grandsons’ graduation from college, and broke the Guinness record for oldest tandem skydiver. “That was my dream,” Blaschke said after the 2020 jump, which was three years after he celebrated his 100th birthday with his debut skydive, according to Guinness. “I never thought I’d be around this long.” Sweden’s Rut Linnéa Ingegärd Larsson surpassed Blaschke’s mark by a relatively slim margin in 2022, at 103 years and 259 days old. It was her exploits that inspired Blaschke to resolve to recapture his mark, according to Guinness. Blaschke, who turned 107 in January, was born into a farming family in Janesville, Wisconsin. He moved to Milwaukee with his relatives when he was seven – and as the US fell into the grips of the Great Depression, Blaschke helped support his family by selling newspapers through high school and beyond. Eventually, Blaschke completed trade school and embarked on a 40-year career in the tool-and-die industry in South Bend, Indiana, building aircraft parts during the second world war before retiring in 1982. skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to First Thing Free daily newsletter Our US morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what’s happening and why it matters Enter your email address Sign upPrivacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion He and his wife, Eleanor, moved to Texas in 2004 to be near their grandsons. She died in 2010 on their 49th anniversary, a 2020 article in the Austin American-Statesman newspaper said. Blaschke, in that article, explained how he did not take up skydiving – which many people much younger than him do not have the courage to try – “just … for the hell of it”. He said its purpose is to commemorate big milestones. As he put it, whether it’s to celebrate his grandsons’ birthdays or set to world records, “it’s got be something … extra special”. * The Olympic skier from the Caribbean who inked tattoos to fund her comeback | Sport Anaïs Caradeux likes a challenge. After spending her childhood in Guadeloupe, she moved to the Alps, took up skiing and took on a hazardous Olympic sport By Jonathan Drennan for Behind the Lines, part of the Guardian Sport Network Jonathan Drennan Mon 30 Jan 2017 10.20 GMTLast modified on Wed 17 May 2017 13.51 BST Share Fear is a constant companion in Anaïs Caradeux’s sport of choice. The freestyle skier has won four medals at the X Games and represented France in the Winter Olympics but she is always aware of the dangers posed on the superpipe, a 22-foot high icy structure from which she she launches herself and contorts her body into spins high above the watching spectators. “I don’t think you ever truly escape from fear,” she says. “At least I don’t. It’s not as bad as it used to be, but once I stop feeling that raw fear, then I know that I could really hurt myself.” Caradeux’s event is rife with injuries and she has been no stranger to them herself. She has spent the last two years between events on the operating table with knees that have refused to comply with her demands. When Caradeux is high in the air, she is working with small margins for error. If she tilts her skis just a few millimetres in the wrong direction, the consequences can be fatal. She talks softly about her friend and role model, Sarah Burke, who died tragically in a training routine in 2012. “Sarah was better than all of us put together, yet she always found time to help. She helped us to travel and compete at the highest level. You couldn’t have found anyone who was a better role model, when she died, things changed for everyone.” Caradeux is only 26 but she knows she doesn’t have long in her chosen sport. The injuries have taken their toll and finding sponsors continues to be an elusive quest. Two years ago in Sochi, her event was entered into the Olympic Games for the first time. Three weeks before the Games, Caradeux injured her left knee badly competing in Aspen. She arrived in Russia on crutches, trying to keep them out of sight of her opponents. She knew she shouldn’t compete but she was desperate to represent her country, whatever it took. “Sochi was a nightmare to me. I remember arriving in Russia on crutches and then having to take a painkilling injection just to make it function. It wasn’t wise but, regardless of the pain, I wanted to do everything to represent France. I mean it’s the Olympics. I had problems with training there – my coach couldn’t enter the area – so I was alone. I managed to do my first run somehow and then, for my second run, I told my coach: ‘I’m going to leave it all out there and do something amazing.’ The walls of the pipe were hard ice and I still remember it, I misjudged things just so slightly, and then, as in slow motion, I slammed hard against the wall and blacked out for 30 seconds.” Caradeux’s relatives were watching on TV across the world in horror. The girl who had spent part of her childhood under the hot sun in Guadeloupe before moving to the French Alps slowly woke up in the snow surrounded by medics. After Sochi, her knee problems continued for two years as she swapped the slopes for the surgeon’s scalpel. From being on top of the world, she lost the majority of her sponsorship and was left to rely on the generosity of a private benefactor, people in her local town and her diminishing savings. View image in fullscreen Anais Caradeux celebrates her second-place finish in the X Games in 2013. Photograph: Richard Bord/Getty Images Caradeux is highly intelligent, articulate and is studying for a Masters degree, so why does she continue to put herself through it? “Do you ever know when you feel really stressed? Your whole body is contorted and you feel everything so vividly. Well, when I compete, I ski angry at the start. I’m afraid at the top. How could you not be? Then when you take off, you’re in the air and you’re gliding. It’s the most incredible feeling of peace, the world seems to stand still as you spin. If I could explain it better in English I would, but I live for that moment. It’s like nothing else matters in those seconds.” The life of a freestyle skier comes with sacrifices. Caradeux grew up the daughter of a dance teacher and she has always moved to her own beat, choosing to spend her spare time hiking in the mountains and building forts as a child. Her Huckleberry Finn childhood brought her cherished friends, who took in the little girl from the Caribbean who had never known the cold. Caradeux arrived in the French Alps at the age of seven and, with the help of her new friends, she become an accomplished teenage skier. View image in fullscreen Medics help Anais Caradeux after a fall at the FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships in 2015. Photograph: Michal Cizek/AFP/Getty Images She thinks about those friends often. “When I was 20, I used to get my friends being so envious of my life. I was travelling the world doing something I love but things change when you get older. At 26, you have that bit more perspective. I see my friends doing these incredible things with their families and their careers, and I have so much admiration for them. As you grow up, it’s sad, but you grow apart. I don’t want that but I am never in one place for more than three months. I have made my decisions and am grateful but I have never had a boyfriend. I never had time. I start to think about the future a lot and what I can do with my life.” A life in boxing: Freddie Roach on Ali, Tyson, Cotto, Pacquiao and his mum Read more While waiting for her knee to heal last summer, Caradeux needed to make money. She found herself employed as a temporary tattoo artist, travelling throughout French market towns. None of her customers were aware that they were being inked by an Olympian and that was how she liked it. “I have always thought to myself, ‘I wonder what else I am good at it.’ This sport has been my life since I was 15. Then I started travelling at this job and I loved the different people I met and the stories they had. It was so nice to be out of that competitive environment and just building these relationships. I loved doing something so different that brought me out of myself.” Caradeux’s has knee strengthened gradually and she is about to fly out to the US to train, feeling as fit as ever. “I feel strong and ready, and in my mind I know if I keep my body healthy I can go on for a while. I want to make the next Olympics and then we will see how everything is. We get a very short life and I feel a responsibility to try to represent myself as best as I can in something I love so dearly. I know when it’s gone, it’s gone forever.” This article is from Behind the Lines Follow Jonathan Drennan on Twitter * Patagonia and The North Face: saving the world – one puffer jacket at a time | Retail industry The retail giants are not only competing to sell outdoor gear – they are rivals in the contest to sell the thrill of the wilderness to the urban masses by Marisa Meltzer Tue 7 Mar 2017 06.00 GMTLast modified on Wed 27 Oct 2021 05.00 BST Share On the night of his 30th birthday, after a few drinks, Dean Karnazes decided that he would celebrate by running all the way from San Francisco down the coast to the town of Half Moon Bay, a distance of 30 miles. So began a career as an endurance runner. He has run 50 marathons in 50 consecutive days in all 50 states, and taken part in such extreme competitions as a marathon to the South Pole and a 135-mile race through Death Valley, one of the hottest places on Earth. Karnazes once ran 350 miles in 81 hours and 44 minutes, without stopping to sleep. His account of his feats of distance running, Ultramarathon Man, is a bestseller. Karnazes’s superhuman exertions are sponsored by The North Face, the company that make the kit he wears in his coaching videos. The North Face, a Bay Area-based outdoor clothing manufacturer, sells garments and gear for climbing, backpacking, running, and skiing. Its stores are decorated with huge photographs of people climbing icy peaks and running through meadows. Central to the brand’s ethos are the professional athletes it sponsors, people not widely known but celebrated in their fields – names such as Karnazes and Pete Athans, who has climbed Everest seven times. The North Face sells the idea of adventure – of pushing limits – whether running long distances, climbing an untried rockface, or sleeping outside at sub-zero temperatures. Its tagline is “never stop exploring”. (“We have actually been approached with partnerships about spacesuits to Mars and things like that,” one publicist told me recently.) How extreme is your life? Take the test Read more This canny marketing of adventure has made The North Face the dominant player in a booming outdoor-wear market – a $4bn industry in the US alone. And its closest rival in the contest to sell the thrill of the wilderness to the masses may be a company whose origins and history are tightly intertwined with its own: Patagonia. From the archive: Patagonia and The North Face: saving the world – one puffer jacket at a time – podcast Read more If The North Face aims to appeal to the overachieving weekend warrior, Patagonia is for the slightly more mellow soul who wants to soak up the fresh air and enjoy the view as he ascends a craggy mountain. The company’s ethos is encapsulated in Let My People Go Surfing, the memoir-cum-management classic about Patagonia, by the company’s founder Yvon Chouinard – reissued last year in a 10th-anniversary edition, with a new introduction by Naomi Klein. The book contains lavish colour pictures of people in genial communion with nature. To browse the book is to dive into a world of life-affirming outdoor feats followed by nights around the fire, swapping heroic tales. Unlike other billion-dollar sports brands, neither company sells balls or bats. They do not cater to team sports. They are, above all, selling the allure of the great outdoors, offering their customers technically advanced gear for going off into the wilds with a friend or two. (Or, if you prefer, alone: the cover of the winter 2016 Patagonia catalogue features a man on a motorbike – carrying a pair of skis under one arm – smiling at a squirrel as it crosses the road.) Both companies understand that the appeal of endurance sports has something to do with acquiring kit that boasts the most advanced technology. For genuine adventure, their marketing implies, you need top-quality gear. And top-quality gear designed to withstand the harshest conditions and last a lifetime does not come cheap. You can buy an Inferno sleeping bag from The North Face that will, for $729 (£593), keep you warm in temperatures as cold as -40C. For $529 (£430), you can get a neoprene-free, natural rubber, hooded wetsuit from Patagonia for use in water temperatures down to 0C. Both companies also understand that the largest market for their products is not explorers stocking up for Arctic expeditions. The real money comes from selling products designed for hardcore outdoor adventure to urban customers who lead relatively unadventurous lives. For the most part, people wear North Face and Patagonia gear while doing everyday things: cycling, shopping, walking the dog. “You can take a backpack to school but you feel like you’re in Yosemite just because it says North Face,” Dean Karnazes told me one afternoon in San Francisco. “I think that aspirational element is really big.” It’s a sales pitch that has yielded big profits. The North Face reported annual revenue of $2.3bn last year, with 200 stores around the world. Patagonia is smaller, but growing more rapidly. The company had sales of $800m in 2016, twice as much as in 2010, and has 29 standalone stores in the US, 23 in Japan, and others in locations such as Chamonix, the French ski resort. While The North Face sells $5,500 (£4,480) two-metre tents and Patagonia sells $629 waders for fly fishing, many of the most popular products for both companies are everyday wear: waterproof anoraks, leggings, fleeces, and, most important of all, puffer jackets. “Everyone is trying to reinvent and reinterpret the black puffy jacket,” said Jeff Crook, the chief product officer at Mountain Equipment Co-Op, an outdoor department store that has 20 stores across Canada, “whether it spends most of its time on the mountain peak or at the bus stop.” Doug Tompkins, co-founder of The North Face, and Yvon Chouinard were lifelong friends and brothers in adventure The flagship jackets for both companies are the product of decades of technological refinement to make them increasingly warm, durable, and light. The most advanced models today have been engineered to solve the problem of how to insulate the wearer against cold and wet while remaining “breathable” – so you don’t overheat while you’re scaling that cliff face. At Patagonia, there is the Nano-Air ($249; £180 in the UK), a quilted, but not very puffy, water resistant jacket that uses a trademarked synthetic insulation that the company described as “revolutionary” upon its release in 2014. The North Face Thermoball ($199; £150) has its own proprietary synthetic insulation, which uses clusters of fibre to trap heat in a manner that mimics down. Both jackets are fit for a mountaineering expedition, but are each more likely to be bought to keep warm while taking the kids to the park. Neither company regards the other as a rival – at least not publicly. But aside from the fact they sell the same kind of stuff to the same kind of customers (urban, affluent), the two companies have quite a bit of shared history. Doug Tompkins, co-founder of The North Face, and Yvon Chouinard were lifelong friends and brothers in adventure. Both men started out making their own specialist equipment; both went on to found companies selling outdoor wear; both felt distinctly uncomfortable doing office jobs, and still more uncomfortable running companies. “I’ve been a businessman for almost 60 years,” Chouinard writes in the introduction to Let My People Go Surfing. “It’s as difficult for me to say those words as it is for someone to admit being an alcoholic or lawyer.” And together, while promoting the glories of exploring the unspoiled wilderness, both men have been central to the mass popularisation of outdoor activities such as hiking and climbing, which may, in turn, make nature a little less unspoiled. Selling professional-grade gear to people with no intention of using it professionally isn’t exactly a new trick in marketing, as the makers of SUVs, digital cameras and headphones can tell you. Most people who buy the Nike trainers advertised by Mo Farah don’t use them to run long distances. But North Face and Patagonia are both wrestling with a more consequential paradox, one that is central to contemporary consumerism: we want to feel morally good about the things we buy. And both companies have been phenomenally successful because they have crafted an image that is about more than just being ethical and environmentally friendly, but about nature, adventure, exploration – ideas more grandiose than simply selling you a jacket, taking your money and trying not to harm the earth too much along the way. But the paradox is that by presenting themselves this way, they are selling a lot more jackets. In other words, both companies are selling stuff in part by looking like they’re not trying too hard to sell stuff, which helps them sell more stuff – and fills the world with more and more stuff. You might call this the authenticity problem. And for all their similarities, the two companies are taking radically different approaches to solving it. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Doug Tompkins and Yvon Choiunard were the kind of outcast adolescents who found a home in the great outdoors. Both men became passionate about climbing and surfing in the American west in the middle of the last century. Back in the 1950s and 60s, climbing was “an unusual sport with just a small group of renegades who were, you know, misfits”, said Rick Ridgeway, an accomplished mountaineer and adventurer. (Rolling Stone magazine once called him “The Real Indiana Jones.”) An old friend of both Tompkins and Choiunard, he is now vice president for public engagement at Patagonia. Both The North Face and Patagonia have their roots in exploring the sort of remote places about which guidebooks had not been written. In those days, getting back to uncorrupted nature and reading Thoreau by the campfire slotted in well with the nascent counterculture. “We took special pride in the fact that climbing rocks and icefalls had no economic value in society,” Chouinard wrote in Let My People Go Surfing. Tompkins opened the first The North Face retail store selling mountaineering equipment in the North Beach neighbourhood of San Francisco in 1966. The Grateful Dead played at the opening, and there was a fashion show featuring Joan Baez and her sister, the late singer and activist Mimi Fariña. In Southern California, Chouinard, who was among the pioneers of what has since become known as the “golden age of Yosemite climbing”, had begun making his own equipment in the late 1950s. At first, he created and forged reusable steel pitons that were hammered into rock faces and then removed. Then, to help preserve climbing routes from disfigurement, Chouinard changed to aluminium chocks that could be wedged in by hand and did not leave a trace behind. The ambition at the time was to do as little damage as possible – as the Sierra climber Doug Robinson put it: “Organic climbing for the natural man.” The two men met in the mid-60s when Tompkins began to distribute Chouinard’s equipment through The North Face. Early in their friendship, a white-water kayaking trip together in California ended with Chouinard getting 15 stitches in his face. And in 1968 the two drove a Ford Econoline van from Ventura, California, to the remote region of Chile and Argentina named Patagonia. That same year, Tompkins sold his stake in The North Face for $50,000, and with his then wife, Susie, founded the San Francisco-based casualwear brand Esprit, whose hip version of sportswear became synonymous with 1980s style. After reading Bill Devall’s environmental call to arms Deep Ecology: Living as if Nature Mattered in the 1980s, Tompkins decided to leave the apparel business and devote himself full time to saving the environment. By the time Esprit was sold in 1990, its annual sales were estimated to be $1bn. View image in fullscreen The opening of the first North Face shop in San Francisco, 1966. Photograph: Suki HIll / The North Face Chouinard had also branched out from mountaineering equipment. He had begun to import climbing wear, for sale, and in 1973, founded a new company named Patagonia. One of his earliest employees was Kris McDivitt, a downhill ski-racer. She became general manager and then CEO of Patagonia, before she met Doug Tompkins, who was then divorced.They married in 1993, a union of sorts between the two companies. Together the couple eventually bought 2.2m acres in Patagonia to conserve and live on full-time. They planned to protect this tract of wilderness, using the fortune he made from fuelling people’s ambitions to explore the outdoors. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If Tompkins’s response to his dawning realisation that the apparel industry was damaging the environment was to sell his business and take direct action to save the Earth, then Chouinard, by contrast, decided to keep his company in private hands and run it in a way that might minimise environmental damage – a nearly impossible task that seems to weigh very heavily on him. “Evil always wins if we do nothing,” he writes in Let My People Go Surfing. The challenge of taking the moral high ground while still making and selling things is something that Rick Ridgeway also thinks about a great deal. “Our mission is to build the best product, causing no unnecessary harm, then that second part of our mission is essentially saying that we’ve got to do less bad,” he said. “We’re going to make our product with the smallest footprint possible, but it is a footprint.” For both men – who would not disagree with the radical environmentalist Edward Abbey’s famous remark that “growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell” – running an ethical business is an almost impossible challenge, if not a contradiction. Populating the world with more stuff that will eventually get thrown away is bad for the planet; the popularising of outdoor culture of all sorts is bad for specific places of natural beauty, which risk being overrun with people; and finally – and most difficult – the entire ethos of growth and profit and consumption is unsustainable for humanity and the health of the planet. Jill Dumain, the director of environment strategy, who has been at Patagonia for more than 27 years, can easily list all the ways the company is trying to do the right thing, among them the decision, in the 1990s, to use only organic cotton, and in 2013 to switch to torture-free goose down. (The North Face made the same move in 2014.) It has tried to replace as many of its synthetic materials as possible with recycled ones, although finding recycled zippers and buttons has been a struggle. Socially, it is committed to fair trade in its supply chain, in the mills and sewing factories it works with. This has led to the company splitting up with suppliers who were not willing or able to make the changes it demanded. These are the sorts of problems that Patagonia has chosen to explore to an almost obsessive degree. The idea of businesses being “transparent” is wholly overused but, in Patagonia’s case, it is fitting. Over time, Chouinard and Ridgeway matured into their roles as aging renegades: they appear as delightfully cranky old friends in a 2010 documentary, 180 Degrees South: Conquerors of the Useless, which follows a young writer and photographer as he attempts to retrace their now-legendary 1968 trip from California to Chile. Their adventures continued into December of 2015, when Chouinard, Ridgeway, Tompkins, and three other friends went on a seemingly gentle five-day kayaking trip to southern Chile. Ridgeway, who is 67, and Tompkins, 72, shared a kayak and it capsized in heavy waves in 4C water. The six men were rescued via patrol boat and helicopter but Tompkins suffered from severe hypothermia. He died in a hospital that night. “Doug had a visceral dislike for authority and always relished breaking the rules,” Chouinard wrote. It was a heartfelt tribute to his old friend. In his book, Chouinard comes off as a grumpy, seasoned old-timer, constantly bemoaning the lack of credibility in everyone, everywhere. “Yvon calls himself the biggest pessimist in the world,” says Dumain. View image in fullscreen Doug Tompkins, co-founder of The North Face. Photograph: Reuters Chouinard and his wife Malinda divide their time between Ventura and their long-time home in Jackson Hole, a mountain resort town in Wyoming now known as a playground for the super-rich – Harrison Ford, Sandra Bullock and Dick Cheney all have homes there. Patagonia employees talk about Chouinard with the devotion usually reserved for cult leaders, but with a tone that suggests that they also view him as a somewhat mercurial genius. “He spends a lot of time outdoors like he always has,” says Rose Marcario, Patagonia’s CEO, “a lot of time fishing, or teaching kids how to fish.” When I called, he was always off somewhere; no one seemed to know quite where. By keeping Patagonia as a privately owned business, Chouinard has been able to run it in a way that stays true to his values. (Patagonia is organised as a for-profit company, known as a B-Corp, with certification for its social and environmental commitment.) “When the company becomes the fatted calf, it’s sold for a profit, and its resources and holdings are often ravaged and broken apart, leading to the disruption of family ties and the long-term health of local economies,” he writes in Let My People Go Surfing. “When you get away from the idea that a company is a product to be sold to the highest bidder in the shortest amount of time, all future decisions in the company are affected.” Patagonia’s competitors, The North Face included, are mostly public companies driven by shareholders. “The mission and the values of Patagonia have never been really about that,” says Marcario. “They’ve been about how much influence we can have on preserving and conserving the wild places that we love and play in, and how much influence we can have as a business to help change the model.” But, while Tompkins left business altogether to save the wilderness, Chouinard seems like a man who will never stop being conflicted about what running a successful business entails. “Patagonia will never be completely socially responsible,” he has written. “It will never make a totally sustainable non-damaging product. But it is committed to trying.” -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Patagonia’s headquarters are in Ventura, a small beach town in Southern California in between Santa Barbara and Los Angeles. The buildings occupy a 5.5-acre campus and are painted in a signature buttery ochre colour used in most of the Patagonia retail stores around the world. There’s a large playground for the onsite creche – an employee benefit so rare in the US that Patagonia published a book last summer about its child-friendly philosophy. The company prides itself in hiring relatively few people but looking after them all. There is something about being on the Patagonia campus that feels like being in a Scandinavian country – albeit one with banana plants, blooming agaves and jacaranda trees. There are solar panels, piles of surfboards for employees to use, and a car with a licence plate that reads BUMKIN. Offices have bean bags and stability balls to sit on, and the canteen serves organic kale blackberry salad. Then there’s the shed that originally housed Chouinard’s blacksmithing workshop, where he made climbing gear. It now feels a bit like a museum piece, frozen in the 1970s, but apparently Chouinard still tinkers around in it from time to time. The campus is the setting for many ostentatious efforts to do good. “One day I was walking down the steps and there were pieces of paper all over the sidewalks, and they all had arrows [on them] and said, ‘Careful. Watch out. Butterfly chrysalis,’” Dean Carter, the vice president of human resources, told me. If this conspicuous altruism is grating to some people, they do not work at Patagonia. Still, the company says that it does not only recruit environmentally conscious do-gooders. “If we picked people who fit a specific mould, it could feel really culty,” Carter said. “But we’re just looking for threads; we’re not looking for the entire quilt. We’re looking for threads of caring for the environment, threads of caring about the outdoors, and threads of caring about families, collaborating, working.” In a not-necessarily-cultish way, a lot of Patagonia employees go on to marry other Patagonia employees, and family members often work there too. Carter’s own daughter is a receptionist. View image in fullscreen Yvon Chouinard in his workshop at the Patagonia headquarters in Ventura, California. Photograph: Victoria Sayer Pearson/AP Companies wishing to improve their public image drop by to see if a little ethical stardust will rub off on them. Coca-Cola flew in a team from South Africa. There was even a visit from Chick-Fil-A, the US fast food chain famous for taking a public stance against same-sex marriage in 2012. I registered my surprise. “Exactly! And I have a partner. So they asked me if they could come. I was kind of like, ‘Are you sure?’” Carter says. “And obviously we don’t share their values. But they have their very specific culture that they’re living. And they were really sweet and kind.” When Neil Blumenthal, co-founder of the fashionable eyewear startup Warby Parker, came to visit, he was impressed by how much work went into research and development – he mentioned the way Patagonia tests its raincoats with waters of various alkalinity to mimic rain in different parts of the world. But what really struck him, he said, was the venue for his meeting with two Patagonia executives: “Instead of taking the meeting in a conference room, we took a walk to the beach. For me it was pretty special; for them it was quite ordinary.” Ridgeway – whose job as vice president of public engagement is to represent the company, whether at conferences or universities, or to executives who come to the Ventura headquarters – described the process of meeting visitors: “They go on a tour, we walk around and talk about the values and how we live the values. Usually we get some local organically grown food and we answer questions and share a story,” Ridgeway told me. “And then we are curious what their story is.” Ridgeway can sometimes sound a little weary at having to explain to outsiders a way of life that comes quite naturally to him. “We don’t want to hold ourselves up in some arrogant exclusivity,” Ridgeway said, but then described the kind of customer that Patagonia does not “necessarily want to invite under our umbrella”. Namely, people who want to climb Mount Everest for bragging rights – the sort of affluent adventurers, drawn to climbing in part by Patagonia, whose impact Chouinard now regrets so much. “Someone who has paid $100,000 for a guided climb where the sherpas put the route in and risked their lives fixing the lines and carried all your stuff up for you and positioned your oxygen balls so you could go up and come back and say you climbed Everest. That doesn’t work for us,” Ridgeway says. “And we don’t mind saying it publicly.” In its pursuit of authenticity, Patagonia tries to avoid malls, and only takes over spaces that mean something to the community. (One of its four Manhattan stores is located on the Bowery, next to the former location of the punk club CBGB, which is now a John Varvatos boutique.) It prides itself on pushing up against the limits of how ethical a company can be while actually still selling things: quality goods, ethical labour and manufacturing, no debt, even a tax strategy, according to Chouinard’s book, “to pay our fair share and not a penny more”. The company is hyper-aware of these contradictions, perhaps to the point of tying itself in knots. In 2011, on Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year in the US, Patagonia ran an ad featuring a photo of a plush blue fleece, and copy that read DON’T BUY THIS JACKET. The advert invited customers to make a commitment to reduce what they buy, repair their gear and recycle the stuff they no longer need. (Patagonia’s campus in Reno, Nevada houses the largest garment repair facility in North America.) But it had the opposite effect: Patagonia’s Black Friday sales increased by 30% over the previous year. The anti-sales message, as they might have expected, made consumers feel better about buying more. View image in fullscreen Patagonia’s Don’t Buy This Jacket advert. Photograph: PR The company’s attempts to expand into new markets have a similar blend of moral commitment and financial savvy. In 2013, it launched a venture fund to invest in environmentally and socially responsible for-profit startups. In 2012, the company launched a food line named Patagonia Provisions, which includes buffalo jerky, smoked wild Sockeye salmon and, beginning last October, a beer made with a grain called kernza, which can be grown year-round. The target market is “concerned moms that want to make sure they’re giving their kids organic, non-GMO food”, Rose Marcario told me. The new food division, she added, has won the company “a whole new set of customers”. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- At the headquarters of The North Face in Alameda – just across the bay from San Francisco – there is a similar preoccupation with being green and avoiding waste. During a visit last summer, I had a lunch of sustainably raised salmon with Todd Spaletto, who became president of the company in 2011. The building where we dined was insulated with recycled blue jeans, and there were composting bins, solar panels and free charging stations for electric cars. One building housed a vast area dedicated to repairing clothes under the company’s lifetime warranty. As we ate, a team out on the lawn was testing out the set-up of a large, complicated-looking hexagonal tent. A visitor to The North Face campus encounters the same sporty feel as at Patagonia HQ – but instead of Patagonia’s crunchy “soul surfer” vibe, here there is an edge of elite athleticism, whether in the form of employees doing bootcamp workouts and agility drills in the well-equipped gym, or a casual mention that Dean Karnazes was there just the other day, leading a group run along the water. “One of my first weeks on the job, I was talking to somebody and they were like, ‘What are you doing this weekend?’” Spaletto recalled, smiling. “I was like, ‘I’m pretty excited, I’m running a half-marathon.’ And they were like” – and here he adopted a tone reserved for motivating small children – “‘That’s great, you gotta start somewhere!’” Lately The North Face has been focusing more and more on a younger, casual customer whose main interest in hiking is the part where they get to drink beer around a campfire. “Why does the youthful millennial consumer go outdoors?” Spaletto asked. “They value one thing above all else. It’s this whole idea of these genuine experiential moments that you share with your friends.” These youthful consumers may even decide they can afford to skip the hike and go straight to the beer. But as The North Face positions itself as a fashion brand as much as an outdoor wear company, a new dilemma arises. The casual customer is drawn both to style and to the authenticity of owning real technical gear – but if the gear itself announces its technical utility too loudly, it ceases to be fashionable. “The outdoor industry has prided itself on showing the technology on the outside – seams sealed, zippers taped. That is very much core to this industry, everybody does it,” said Sumie Scott, the senior product director for “mountain culture” at The North Face. “But the more youthful consumer wants hidden technology. So that’s the challenge, how do you get them to know that technology exists?” “What The North Face tries to push is this high, high performance extremity,” said Cathy Begien, who worked in visual merchandising at The North Face a decade ago, and has since gone on to work at Prada, Opening Ceremony, and Warby Parker. “They would say, ‘Cathy use Everest imagery or rock climbing.’ But I’m in a mall and people are pushing strollers around at 8am. I don’t think they care about whether an alpinist would want this, or an ultra-marathoner,” Begien recalled. “Holiday season was the only time I didn’t have to talk about mountain climbing or water rafting and could just show a bunch of jackets in a way the typical mall consumer can understand: this one is gonna keep you warm, this one is gonna keep you warmer, this one is gonna keep you warmest.” The high cost of North Face gear creates high expectations: “You get a fairly affluent customer who expects meticulous service. You have to behave as though you’re working at a Vuitton or a Gucci,” said Caitlin Kelly, a journalist who took a job at a North Face outlet in suburban New York after losing her reporting job during the 2008 recession, and wrote a book, titled Malled, about the experience. “It was a long, narrow store. And when you walked in, half the store was fashion, half was ‘Let’s climb Everest’. It was massively confusing to the shopper.” The North Face wants to do style and adventure. It has collaborated on slippers and puffer jackets with Supreme, the skateboarding brand with a cult following. (Drake wore a jacket from the collection in the video for his 2011 single The Motto.) The trend among makers of serious technical gear is for designs that don’t look like you are about to climb to Camp 4 on Everest – while at the same time, couture designers are increasingly showing items inspired by authentic outdoor gear. Patrik Ervell, Steven Alan and Louis Vuitton have all designed fleece jackets that appear to be a riff on Patagonia’s Retro-X; puffer jackets have started to appear on the covers of fashion magazines, thanks in part to Balenciaga’s $3,000 parkas. The desire to broadcast a sense of adventure while still looking good may have something to do with the biggest trend in athletic gear in recent years: the rise of “athleisure” – clothes that suggest, rather than insist on, performance, designed to transition from workout to sofa. Leggings – whether made by The Gap or Alexander Wang – are the most popular form of sporting loungewear (or is it lounging sportswear), having replaced denim as the preferred casual wear for women. The UK sportswear market will surpass £8bn by 2020, fuelled by the rise of athleisure. In addition to gear for high-altitude camping and open-water diving, both The North Face and Patagonia sell leggings and sweatpants and T-shirts and all manner of gear best suited for hanging out. North Face has the misfortune of being east-coast prep-school girls wearing black puffers and UggsMatt Langer But for The North Face, exercising feels like an urban moral imperative, much as recycling does at Patagonia – a duty to care for oneself in tandem with caring about nature. While The North Face nominally shares the same ethos as Patagonia in terms of protecting the planet, its status as a publicly traded company means it has to maximise profits, which goes with the company’s type-A branding – you are not going to see any North Face slow-growth manifestos or “Don’t Buy This Jacket” ads. In fact, after The North Face announced in October that its third-quarter revenue had dropped 1%, Spaletto, my summer lunch companion, quietly departed the company. If the risk for Patagonia is to be seen just like any other company – one that cares as much about profits as the environment – then the comparable risk for The North Face is to be associated with suburban parents and college students whose greatest trek is across the quad, rather than trailrunners, mountain climbers and the occasional well-dressed rapper. It has to remain authentic enough to represent authenticity for the casual customer, without being so authentic that those people stop buying. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- “North Face has the misfortune of being east-coast prep-school girls wearing black puffers and Uggs,” says Matt Langer – a cyclist, New Mexico resident and Patagonia customer. He’s a friend of a friend whose Instagram looks like a real-life recreation of the Patagonia catalogue, complete with fly-fishing, long-distance mountain biking, an adorable dog and waterfalls. Patagonia’s marketing is spot on, he says, a bit sheepishly. “I am a bearded white guy drinking beer around the campfire.” For the committed outdoorsman – who styles himself a rugged individualist, untouched by the whims of fashion – there’s an ambivalence at being so accurately cast. That stereotype, says Josh Contois, who I met on a group hiking trip in California last year, “is to be a dirtbag and live frugally and also wear a $250 jacket”. (Outside Magazine once called Chouinard “King of the Dirtbags”.) Both Contois and Langer wear Patagonia in a way that would make Chouinard smile, even though much of their actual equipment comes from niche brands. For the real dirtbag, who now regards The North Face somewhat like McDonald’s or Wal-Mart, even Patagonia has mostly sold out to the urban yuppie. The true adventurer instead buys even more expensive, precious, and specialised gear – from tiny companies owned and operated by fellow mountaineers in outdoor meccas such as Boulder, Colorado or Bend, Oregon. “Let’s be honest, Patagonia appeals to – I don’t want to sound like a smartass – but people driving Range Rovers who shop at Whole Foods,” said Doug Heinrich, an executive at the Utah-based Black Diamond Equipment – Chouinard’s original climbing equipment company, which was renamed after he sold it to an employee in the 1980s. “That doesn’t mean they don’t appeal to core climbers, but we’re going to appeal to that hardcore climber more than Patagonia would.” Why are deadly extreme sports more popular than ever? Read more On the other end of the spectrum, there is another crop of companies who appeal to the super-rich (or design fetishists) by trying to out-fancy Patagonia and The North Face on both technical sophistication and price. The small Canadian brand Arc’teryx produces a high-end line called Veilance, which promises “minimalist style with total performance”, and looks as if Prada made high-tech outdoor gear, with prices to match. Canada Goose, whose “Arctic luxury apparel” is worn by scientists at the South Pole, offers a “Kensington” Parka priced at £850. There is something undeniably alluring about the lengthy descriptions of the technical merits of all this cutting-edge gear: the insulation that traps air for reduced heat loss and increased warmth, the underarm vents, the wrist accessory pocket, the reminder that your jacket is coming with a lifetime warranty, even if it isn’t destined to leave the borough of Manhattan. That, after all, was always the bedrock of high fashion – people justified the prices of a cashmere sweater or a leather jacket because what they bought was well made, beautifully crafted, and lasted for ever. This may be what appeals to such customers as the man who recently came into the San Francisco North Face store and bought a Himalayan suit, which is filled with goose down and costs $1,000. The sales copy describes the item thus: “Technical, insulated full-body suit for climbing 8,000-metre peaks, the Himalayan Suit is a necessity for athletes aiming to reach the top of the world.” It looks like a yellow and black sleeping bag with arms and legs and, according to the catalogue, includes “critical features based on Conrad Anker’s feedback and proven on Mount Everest, where the athlete team successfully reached summit”. The staff at The North Face store asked the customer where he was planning on going with his Himalayan suit. Nowhere, he said. He was just buying it because it was cool. Follow the Long Read on Twitter at @gdnlongread, or sign up to the long read weekly email here. This article was amended on 9 March 2017. An earlier version misnamed Rose Marcario as Rose Marciano. * D-day veteran becomes world's oldest skydiver at 101 and 38 days | World records Verdun Hayes breaks record by completing tandem skydive with three generations of his family in Devon Press Association Sun 14 May 2017 15.40 BSTLast modified on Tue 28 Nov 2017 00.19 GMT Share A D-day veteran who jumped 15,000ft from a plane has become the oldest person in the world to skydive – at the age of 101 and 38 days. Bryson William Verdun Hayes, known as Verdun, broke the world record on Sunday, completing a tandem skydive with three generations of his family at an airfield in Honiton, Devon. As he touched down, the former Royal Signals lance corporal said “hooray” and added that he was feeling “absolutely over the moon” at completing the challenge. The great-grandfather tried skydiving for the first time when he reached 100, but breaking the British record for the oldest skydiver was not enough for him. Hayes, who said a parachute jump was something he had wanted to do since he turned 90 – but was talked out of it by his wife, who has since died – was determined to take the world record and beat its previous holder, Canadian Armand Gendreau who skydived in June 2013 aged 101 and three days. Asked how he was feeling before Sunday’s jump, Hayes replied with a stoic “all right” and said he was looking forward to the experience. He took to the skies with 10 members of his family at Skydive Buzz in Dunkeswell, all raising money for the Royal British Legion. The youngest skydiver was Stanley, 16, Hayes’ great-grandson, while his grandson Roger, 50, son Bryan, 74, and great-granddaughter Ellie, 21, were also among those who took the leap. View image in fullscreen Hayes (left), with his family members before the jump. Photograph: Skydive Buzz/PA Ahead of the skydive, his daughter, Lin Tattersall, said: “He’s made up his own mind that he wants to do it again, and I am extremely proud of the reasoning behind it.” Hayes, from Croyde, Devon, served in the army during the second world war and was presented with a Légion d’honneur for his heroic actions in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and in Normandy, France. He was named Verdun after his father, Joseph Hayes, who served in the first world war as a sapper with the Royal Engineers and who fought during the Battle of the Somme, wrote home to his pregnant wife, Mary, from the frontline suggesting they call their child Verdun after the 1916 battle. Hayes served as a signaller and wireless operator for the Royal Signals during the second world war. He returned to Normandy in 2016 as a beneficiary of the Royal British Legion’s Remembrance Travel arm. View image in fullscreen Hayes during his skydive, in which he became the oldest person in the world to jump 15,000ft from a plane. Photograph: Skydive Buzz/PA During the war, Hayes sustained shrapnel injuries to his ribs and hands in an explosion that killed his friend, Sgt Edgar Robertson. He said: “How I came home from world war two I do not know. I was so near to the edge of everything. I lost any amount of friends in no time at all really. I just didn’t think I would ever return home.” A spokesman for the Royal British Legion said Hayes would be celebrating with a glass of champagne. He said: “We are very proud of Verdun’s achievements and his family’s support for the Royal British Legion and the money raised recognises the service and sacrifice made across all generations of the British armed forces. “The money raised will help support individuals and families from across the generations of our armed forces community.” Members of the family have separate online donation pages but Hayes, who hoped to raise £1,000, has already beaten his target and the current total on Virgin Money Giving stands at more than £1,600. BrazilBelgiumArgentinaFranceeuropaDenmarkGermanyCroatiaMexicoUruguay QQM Extreme Sports Channel QQM Extreme Sports Channel Luka Doncic takes over in first quarter, Mavericks go on to rout Timberwolves, advance to NBA Finals - NBC Sports Mavericks' center Dereck Lively out for Game 4 with neck sprain - NBC Sports LeBron James could opt for free agency, agent Rich Paul's comment hints on TNT - NBC Sports * Luka Doncic takes over in first quarter, Mavericks go on to rout Timberwolves, advance to NBA Finals - NBC Sports MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - MAY 30: Luka Doncic #77 of the Dallas Mavericks celebrates during the fourth quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game Five of the Western Conference Finals at Target Center on May 30, 2024 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images) Getty Images Minnesota had the No. 1 defense in the NBA this season and made the Western Conference Finals on the back of it. Luka Doncic torched that D in the first quarter Thursday night, ripping the hearts out of the Timberwolves and their fans. Kyrie Irving came to life as the night wore on and stomped on that heart, finishing with 36 points (the same number as Doncic). Luka Doncic & Kyrie Irving put on impeccable Game 5 performances, combining for 72 PTS as the @dallasmavs advance to the NBA Finals!Luka: 36 PTS | 10 REB | 6 3PMKyrie: 36 PTS | 5 AST | 4 3PMGame 1 of #NBAFinals presented by @YouTubeTV is Thursday, 6/6 at 8:30pm/et on ABC! pic.twitter.com/2njO9yiiW9 — NBA (@NBA) May 31, 2024 After stepping up in Game 4, Minnesota took a step back on Thursday night and looked off all game. “The game kinda slipped away from us in the first quarter when we missed a lot of easy stuff, went one-on-one too early, just kinda got busted out of any kind of offensive structure,” Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch said. “Then we couldn’t get stops and that was the game.” The result was a 124-103 thrashing the Mavericks handed the Timberwolves to take the series 4-1 — with Dallas winning all three games played in Minnesota. The Mavericks advance to the NBA Finals for the first time in the Doncic era, and will face the Celtics starting June 6 in Boston. Finals!!! Let’s go! — Dirk Nowitzki (@swish41) May 31, 2024 This win and that late Finals start date means Doncic gets a week off to rest his ailing knee and ankle. He can do that while holding the Western Conference Finals MVP trophy, which he won. Thursday night’s Game 5 followed a pattern: The Timberwolves brought the ball up the court, got into their sets late, and had to run multiple actions to get a tightly contested shot with three seconds left on the shot clock. Then, the Mavericks grabbed the rebound, pushed to the other end, and got a good look within the first 12 seconds. “Luka came out and set the tone offensively and defensively,” Mavs coach Jason Kidd said. “I thought he let everyone know he was ready to play. I thought we followed his lead.” It was a rough night for the home fans almost from the start because of Doncic. After one quarter, the score was Luka Doncic 20, Minnesota 19. Doncic scored 20 of the first 30 Mavericks points (on 8-of-10 shooting), and he led the 17-1 run to end the first quarter and have Dallas up 35-19. 20 FIRST-QUARTER POINTS FOR LUKA 🔥 pic.twitter.com/vyion4EOpa — NBA TV (@NBATV) May 31, 2024 The only thing that changed in the second quarter was that Irving got into the mix, and by halftime it was Irving/Doncic 44, Minnesota 40. However, once the rest of the Mavericks were added, it was 69-40 Dallas and a rout. The rest of the game felt like garbage time. Dereck Lively returned from missing one game with a sprained neck and provided a spark of energy — and a scary moment when Naz Reid hit him in the back of the head, the same spot KAT had kneed him in Game 3. Reid got a Flagrant 1 and Lively stayed in the game, finishing with nine points and 8 rebounds. P.J. Washington scored a dozen for Dallas, while Daniel Gafford had 11 points and nine rebounds. Minnesota got 28 points each from Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns, but no other players scored in double figures for the Timberwolves. * Mavericks' center Dereck Lively out for Game 4 with neck sprain - NBC Sports May 26, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Dereck Lively II (2) reacts after an injury in the second quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves during game three of the western conference finals for the 2024 NBA playoffs at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports Mavericks center Dereck Lively II is officially out for Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals on Tuesday with a neck sprain. However, another Dallas center, Maxi Kleber, is closer to a return after being out since May 7 with a shoulder injury and is officially questionable for Game 4. Lively had to leave Game 3 in the third quarter after incidentally being kneed in the head by Karl-Anthony Towns. He left the game but reports say he has not been put in concussion protocol, that the injuries are all about his neck. Dereck Lively takes a hit to the head and has left to the locker roomWishing him well 🙏 pic.twitter.com/s7K4VGuY2B — Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 27, 2024 Lively averaged 9.7 points a game — on perfect 13-of-13 shooting — plus 7.7 rebounds a game in the three games against the Timberwolves, but the numbers undersell his importance. Dallas is +22 in Lively’s minutes through three games and -9 in the minutes he is off the court. He has been a defensive force protecting the rim — in rotation with Daniel Gafford — and his ability to finish alley-oops around the rim has made him a favorite target of Luka Doncic this series. Playing without Lively will put a lot more on Gafford’s plate, but it would help if Kleber returns. He went through a workout on the court on the off day in the series Monday. He has been out since May 7 with an AC joint separation, but if he can return the threat of his 3-point shot — 34.8% from beyond the arc this season hisplus is rebounding and defense would be a boost. If he cannot go, expect Jason Kidd to go with a small-ball lineup with P.J. Washington at the five when Gafford is on the bench. Dallas is up 3-0 in the Western Conference Finals and will look to close out the series on Tuesday. * LeBron James could opt for free agency, agent Rich Paul's comment hints on TNT - NBC Sports LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 27: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers looks on during the game against the Denver Nuggets during Round 1 Game 4 of the 2024 NBA Playoffs on April 27, 2024 at Crypto.Com Arena in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images) NBAE via Getty Images LeBron James has until June 29 to decide whether to opt in to the final year of his contract with the Lakers, which means signing an extension with the team (totaling $164 million over three years), or opting out, in which case he becomes a free agent and can re-sign with the Lakers or another team. LeBron has played his decision making close to the vest, but his agent Rich Paul was on the TNT alternate broadcast of the Western Conference Finals and said a little more. Rich Paul: “LeBron is a free agent.”… but LeBron currently has a pending player option. Interesting slip up from his agent. 👀(via @ChrisBHaynes) pic.twitter.com/5IrtdnP8C1 — Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) May 26, 2024 “LeBron’s a free agent. I gotta focus on his business ... and let the Lakers hire who they want to hire. He’s always showed up and played for whatever coach is there.” When Chris Haynes called out Paul and asked if that meant LeBron would decline his option, Paul wouldn’t go down that road. “Chris, you know I don’t do my business over the air, man... “I don’t know what he’s gonna do. We’re gonna do what we do every year. We’re gonna evaluate the situation and we’re gonna make the best decision.” LeBron’s history is of using the leverage of his free agency to get a team to make short-term roster upgrades that make them more competitive (often while saying he’s not involved in these decisions). That feels like what is going on now. In the mind of LeBron and his agent Paul, maybe they want to look at this offseason as if they were free agents, but the sense from sources with teams around the league that while LeBron may flirt with other teams he’ll ultimately re-sign or extend with the Lakers. If LeBron opts in and signs a max two-year extension with the Lakers, it would be worth $164 million over the three years. (No team can offer LeBron more than three years because of the over-38 rule.) If LeBron opts out and re-signs with the Lakers, his max deal is worth $162 million over three years. Another team — Philadelphia, would be interested if LeBron becomes a free agent — can offer up to $157 million over three years. For now, the focus is on the Lakers and their coaching search, in which J.J. Redick — not so coincidentally LeBron’s podcast partner — is one of the frontrunners for the job. * Jrue Holiday's finishing flurry helps Celtics beat Pacers 114-111 for 3-0 lead in East finals - NBC Sports Windhorst: Lakers, Cavs competing in coach market May 24, 2024 11:59 AM Brian Windhorst joins the Dan Patrick Show to discuss the Los Angeles Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers' coaching searches, as well as potential changes to the NBA All-Star Game. INDIANAPOLIS — Jrue Holiday overcame an illness to convert the go-ahead three-point play with 38 seconds left, then make the game-saving steal to help the Boston Celtics rally from an 18-point deficit to beat the Indiana Pacers 114-111 on Saturday night for a 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference finals. Boston can clinch its second NBA Finals trip in three seasons with a Game 4 win Monday in Indianapolis. Jayson Tatum matched his playoff career high with 36 points and had 10 rebounds and eight assists. Jaylen Brown added 24 points and Al Horford had 23 points and seven 3-pointers as the Celtics won their sixth straight playoff game and stayed unbeaten on the road this postseason. Holiday played despite being listed as questionable with an illness unrelated to COVID-19. Andrew Nembhard led the Pacers with a career-high 30 points before Holiday stole the ball from him with 3.3 seconds remaining. T.J. McConnell finished with 23 points, nine rebounds and six assists, while Myles Turner and Pascal Siakam each had 22 points. Indiana played without All-NBA guard Tyrese Haliburton, who sat out with a left hamstring injury, and certainly missed him as Boston closed the game on a 13-2 run. It’s the first loss in seven postseason home games for the Pacers. BrazilBelgiumArgentinaFranceeuropaDenmarkGermanyCroatiaMexicoUruguay Tokyo Olympics: Team GB's medal winners Great Britain have reached UK Sport's target of between 45 and 70 medals at Tokyo 2020 after racking up number 65 on day 16. Here's a reminder of those who have taken to the podium so far in Tokyo... * Updated Medals Table * Tokyo Olympics: SCHEDULE | RESULTS TEAM GB'S YEAR OF THE FEMALE OLYMPIAN With more female than male athletes for the first time, Tokyo will see 201 women selected with some remarkable tales to tell GOLD Adam Peaty - men's 100m breaststroke Adam Peaty became the first British swimmer to defend an Olympic title when he retained his 100m breaststroke crown. He remarkably accounts for the 16 quickest times over the distance in history. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Olympic champion Adam Peaty admits the delay to the Games was difficult to take, but his perseverance has paid off Olympic champion Adam Peaty admits the delay to the Games was difficult to take, but his perseverance has paid off Tom Daley & Matty Lee - men's synchronised 10m platform In one of the great GB stories of Tokyo 2020, Tom Daley and Matty Lee clinched gold in the synchronised 10m platform with a score of 471.81. While Lee was making his Olympic debut alongside his childhood idol, Daley continued a magical story 13 years on from his first Games. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Matty Lee says his diving partner Tom Daley is one of his 'best friends' after the pair won gold in the men's synchronised 10m platform event at Tokyo 2020 Matty Lee says his diving partner Tom Daley is one of his 'best friends' after the pair won gold in the men's synchronised 10m platform event at Tokyo 2020 Tom Dean - men's 200m freestyle Six months on from contracting coronavirus for a second time, Tom Dean prompted wild celebrations at a family watch party back in Maidenhead at roughly 3am as he edged out close friend Duncan Scott to secure gold in the men's 200m freestyle. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Watch what happened when Tom Dean's family and friends gathered in his mum's garden to cheer him on to victory in the 200m freestyle at the Tokyo Olympics! Watch what happened when Tom Dean's family and friends gathered in his mum's garden to cheer him on to victory in the 200m freestyle at the Tokyo Olympics! Tom Pidcock - men's cross-country mountain biking Not long since fracturing his collarbone after being hit by a car, Yorkshireman Tom Pidcock became the youngest mountain bike champion in Olympic history as he claimed gold on day three. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player After winning Team GB's third gold medal of the Tokyo Olympics in the men's cross-country mountain biking, 21-year-old cyclist Tom Pidcock admitted his achievement was taking time to hit home After winning Team GB's third gold medal of the Tokyo Olympics in the men's cross-country mountain biking, 21-year-old cyclist Tom Pidcock admitted his achievement was taking time to hit home Tom Dean, Duncan Scott, Matt Richards, James Guy - Men's 4x200m freestyle relay Britain stormed to success in the pool and fell just 0.03secs short of a world record with Dean claiming a second gold of the Games - the first British male swimmer to do so since 1908. Tom Dean, James Guy, Matthew Richards, Duncan Scott pose after winning the 4x200m freestyle relay final at the 2020 Olympics Beth Shriever - women's BMX Moments after watching GB team-mate Kye Whyte clinch silver in the men's event, Beth Shriever went one better by leading from the first bend and holding off reigning champion Mariana Pajon to win gold. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Bethany Shriever hopes her BMX Olympic gold medal will help to inspire the next generation to take up the sport Bethany Shriever hopes her BMX Olympic gold medal will help to inspire the next generation to take up the sport Charlotte Worthington - women's BMX park freestyle A score of 97.5 saw Charlotte Worthington beat out three-time world champion Hannah Roberts to seal the gold in the first ever Olympic women's BMX freestyle competition, landing a 360 backflip to confirm her place on top of the podium. Charlotte Worthington flips in mid-air during the BMX freestyle competition Kathleen Dawson, Adam Peaty, James Guy, Anna Hopkin - mixed 4x100m medley relay Another swimming event, another gold for Team GB. Their eighth of the Games came courtesy of Kathleen Dawson, Adam Peaty, James Guy and Anna Hopkin with a new world record time of three minutes, 37.58 seconds to win the mixed 4x100m medley relay. James Guy, Adam Peaty, Anna Hopkin and Kathleen Dawson pose with their gold medals Jess Learmonth, Jonny Brownlee, Georgia Taylor-Brown, Alex Yee - mixed triathlon relay At long last Jonny Brownlee ticked off his first Olympic gold as he teamed up with Jess Learnmonth, Georgia Taylor-Brown and Alex Yee to win the first ever mixed triathlon relay. Jonny Brownlee earned a gold medal at his last Olympic Games Max Whitlock - pommel horse In defending his Rio 2016 crown in the pommel horse, Max Whitlock collected his sixth medal over three Games to cement his name among Great Britain's most decorated Olympians. He joins an exclusive club alongside Sir Bradley Wiggins, Sir Chris Hoy, Jason Kenny, Sir Steve Redgrave and Charlotte Dujardin as the sixth Brit to win at least six Olympic medals. Max Whitlock retained his Olympic gold medal on the pommel horse Giles Scott - sailing, men's Finn Giles Scott fended off Hungary's Zsombor Berecz in the men's Finn to retain the gold he won in Brazil five years ago. Britain's Giles Scott celebrates after placing first in the men's Finn medal race Dylan Fletcher, Stuart Bithell - sailing, men's 49er class World No.1-ranked pair Dylan Fletcher and Stuart Bithell earned Great Britain's first sailing medal in Tokyo by coming from down in second to beat out New Zealand's Peter Burling and Blair Tuke. Dylan Fletcher and Stuart Bithell celebrate their win Oliver Townend, Laura Collett, Tom McEwen - eventing team Great Britain delivered their first victory in the team eventing tournament since 1972 when Oliver Townend, Laura Collett and Tom McEwen producing phenomenal rides to win Great Britain's 11th gold. Great Britain's Laura Collett Hannah Mills and Eilidh McIntyre - women's sailing 470 class It was a consecutive 470 class gold medal for Hannah Mills, who had won the same title in Rio and became the most decorated British female sailor of all time at Enoshima Harbour. Mills, and Olympic debutant Eilidh McIntyre, helped complete Britain's haul of three golds, one silver and one bronze across regatta events which saw GB top the sailing standings at Tokyo 2020. Hannah Mills and Eilidh McIntyre of Great Britain jump into the water after winning the women's 470 gold medal at Enoshima Harbour Ben Maher - individual showjumping Ben Maher added a fifth equestrian medal for Team GB with a gold in the individual showjumping with the help of his brilliant horse Explosion W. The 28-year-old won by 17 hundredths of a second and delivered a memorable jump-off round. Ben Maher secured his second gold Olympic medal following his win in the team showjumping at London 2012 Matt Walls - men's omnium cycling Gold in the men's omnium cycling went to 23-year-old Matt Walls after he won the four-discipline men's omnium event to win by a margin of 24 points ahead of New Zealand's Campbell Stewart. Matt Walls would not be denied gold on day 13 Laura Kenny, Katie Archibald - women's madison Laura Kenny won her fifth gold medal while Katie Archibald became a two-time Olympic champion as the British pair delivered a masterclass by winning 10 out of 12 sprints to cruise to gold in the first ever women's madison. Katie Archibald and Laura Kenny celebrate winning their gold medal Kate French - modern pentathlon Kate French entered the final round fifth overall in the modern pentathlon, before producing a superhuman laser run performance to catapult her way to gold, five years on from placing fifth in Rio. Kate French crossing the line and realising that an Olympic gold medal belongs to her Galal Yafai - men's flyweight boxing Galal Yafai floored Carlo Paalam in an explosive points victory to claim Team GB's first Olympic boxing gold medal of the Games in the flyweight final. He dropped Paalam in a dramatic opening round before completing the 4-1 split decision victory over his Filipino opponent. Galal Yafai won Team GB's first boxing gold of the Games Joe Choong - men's modern pentathlon Joe Choong showed superb composure and strength to finish the final laser run ahead of Ahmed Elgendy and complete an exceptional series of events. Choong's gold came just 24 hours after French's emphatic triumph in the women's competition. It is Team GB's first men's individual modern pentathlon medal. Joe Choong let his emotions out as he crossed the line Jason Kenny - men's keirin On the final day of action inside the Izu Velodrome, Jason Kenny successfully defended his men's keirin gold medal and became the first Briton to win seven Olympic gold medals. It also made Kenny the first Briton to win nine Olympic medals as he added this gold to the team sprint silver he won alongside Jack Carlin and Ryan Owens. Great Britain's Jason Kenny celebrates with the gold medal in the men's keirin final to become the most decorated British Olympian of all time Lauren Price - women's middleweight boxing Lauren Price comprehensively outboxed China's Li Qian at the Kokugikan Arena to win Team GB's second boxing gold medal at the Games. Price had been stretched to her limit against Nouchka Fontijn in the fight prior, but there was no such drama in the final and she claimed a claimed gold with an unanimous points win. SILVER Alex Yee - men's triathlon While all eyes had been on Jonny Brownlee, it was Alex Shee who shone through to underline his incredible potential with a silver medal in the triathlon while making his Olympic bow. Alex Yee of Great Britain holds his silver medal (AP) Georgia Taylor-Brown - women's triathlon Georgia Taylor-Brown managed to overcome a puncture before shining in the 10km run to earn a silver medal in the women's triathlon behind Flora Duffy, who became Bermuda's first-ever Olympic champion. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Georgia Taylor-Brown reveals she won silver for Team GB in the women's triathlon at the Olympics despite a flat tyre during the cycling section Georgia Taylor-Brown reveals she won silver for Team GB in the women's triathlon at the Olympics despite a flat tyre during the cycling section Duncan Scott - men's 200m freestyle It took a stunning display from GB teammate Tom Dean to hold Duncan Scott off as he finished 0.04 seconds behind in the men's 200m freestyle to ensure a British one-two finish, marking the first time two British male swimmers have shared an Olympic podium since London 1908. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Team GB gold medallist Tom Dean and silver medallist Duncan Scott reflect on their one-two finish in the 200m freestyle Team GB gold medallist Tom Dean and silver medallist Duncan Scott reflect on their one-two finish in the 200m freestyle Bradly Sinden - men's -68kg taekwondo Bradly Sinden was forced to settle for silver in the men's -68kg taekwondo after relinquishing his two-point lead in the dying seconds of his final against Uzbekistan's Ulugbek Rashitov. Britain's Bradly Sinden with his silver medal Lauren Williams - women's -67kg taekwondo Following an injury-stricken year heading into the games, Lauren Williams excelled to reach the final of the women's -67kg only to cruelly miss out on gold after a late flurry from Croatian opponent Matea Jelic. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Team GB taekwondo silver medallist Lauren Williams says she hopes her performances can inspire the next generation of Olympic hopefuls Team GB taekwondo silver medallist Lauren Williams says she hopes her performances can inspire the next generation of Olympic hopefuls Harry Leask, Angus Groom, Tom Barras, Jack Beaumont - men's quadruple sculls. The quartet led Britain to their first medal of the Tokyo Games at the Sea Forest Waterway, maintaining their lead amid pressure from Australia and Poland, who had to settle for silver and bronze. Great Britain's Harry Leask, Angus Groom, Tom Barras and Jack Beaumont celebrate winning silver in the men's quadruple Sculls Mallory Franklin - women's C1 canoe slalom Mallory Franklin's time of 108.68 was enough to seal silver in the women's C1 canoe slalom event as world No 1 Jessica Fox topped the podium. Mallory Franklin won silver in the women's C1 canoe slalom Kye Whyte - men's BMX Kye Whyte put poor starts in qualifying behind him to win Great Britain's first BMX racing Olympic medal as he snapped up silver, finishing just 0.144 seconds behind winner Niek Kimmann. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Kye Whyte believes his BMX Olympic silver medal has helped raise the profile of the sport in Great Britain Kye Whyte believes his BMX Olympic silver medal has helped raise the profile of the sport in Great Britain Duncan Scott - men's 200m individual medley Medal machine Duncan Scott collected another for Great Britain by winning silver in the men's 200m individual medley with a personal best time to add to his silver in the 200m freestyle and gold in 4x200m freestyle relay. Duncan Scott poses after winning the silver medal in the men's 200mindividual medley Luke Greenbank, Adam Peaty, James Guy, Duncan Scott and James Wilby - men's 4x100m medley relay The eighth swimming medal for Great Britain in Tokyo unsurprisingly came in the pool, Luke Greenbank, Adam Peaty, James Guy, Duncan Scott and James Wilby (who featured in the heats) finishing second behind the USA. Luke Greenbank, Adam Peaty, James Guy and Scott took silver in the men's 4x100 metres medley relay final Keely Hodgkinson - women's 800m Not only did 19-year-old Keely Hodgkinson win a silver medal in the women's 800m final, but she also broke childhood idol Dame Kelly Holmes' long-standing British record with a time of 1.55.88. Keely Hodgkinson reacts after her second-place finish in the final of the women's 800m (AP Photo/David Goldman) Pat McCormack - men's boxing There was no gold for Pat McCormack as he was beaten by the experienced Roniel Iglesias in the men's welterweight final, but his silver did ensure that Great Britain would leave Tokyo with at least six boxing medals, marking their biggest haul since 1920. Roniel Iglesias is named winner against Pat McCormack Jason Kenny, Jack Carlin, Ryan Owens - cycling, men's team sprint An impressive performance from the Netherlands to set a new Olympic record left the Great British trio of Jason Kenny, Jack Carlin and Ryan Owens to take the silver in the men's team sprint. Jason Kenny added another medal to his growing collection And while it wasn't gold, another medal did draw Kenny level with Sir Bradley Wiggins on eight as Great Britain's most decorated Olympian. Katie Archibald, Laura Kenny, Jessie Knight, Neah Evan - cycling, women's team pursuit There was also a silver medal for the women's team pursuit quartet of Katie Archibald, Laura Kenny, Jessie Knight and Neah Evan after they came off second best to a superb Germany outfit, which set a new world record in the final. Great Britain's Katie Archibald, Laura Kenny, Neah Evans, Josie Knight and Elinor Barker with their silver medals for the women's team pursuit John Gimson, Anna Burnet - sailing, nacra 17 multi-hull class Silver in the mixed Nacra 17 class went to John Grimson and Anna Burnet as they followed Italy's Ruggero Tita and Caterina Banti. John Gimson and Anna Burnet won silver in the mixed Nacra 17. Emily Campbell - women's +87kg weightlifting Great Britain's first women's Olympic weightlifting medal came via Emily Campell, whose lifts of 156kg and 161kg in the +87kg category earned her second place behind China's Li Wenwen. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Team GB's silver medal-winning weightlifter, Emily Campbell says she hopes she has inspired young girls and boys to try the sport Team GB's silver medal-winning weightlifter, Emily Campbell says she hopes she has inspired young girls and boys to try the sport Tom McEwen - individual eventing Tom McEwen followed up the team gold won by Britain earlier in the day on Monday to take home silver in the individual eventing. Teammate Oliver Townend meanwhile finished in fifth, while Laura Collett was down in ninth. Tom McEwen with silver medal won in the individual three-day event at Tokyo 2020 Ben Whittaker - men's boxing Ben Whittaker continued the boxing success for Team GB at the Kokugikan Arena with a silver in the men's light-heavyweight final after coming up just short against Cuba's Arlen Lopez. Ben Whittaker lost to Cuba's Arlen Lopez in the men's light-heavyweight gold medal match Laura Muir - women's 1500m Five years on from finishing seventh in Rio, Laura Muir battled her way to a deserved podium finish as she overtook Sifan Hassan on the final lap of the women's 1500m final to take silver with a new British record behind runaway gold medallist Faith Kipyegon of Kenya. Laura Muir CJ Ujah, Zharnel Hughes, Richard Kilty, Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake - men's 4x100m relay The quartet of CJ Ujah, Zharnel Hughes, Richard Kilty and Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake bolstered what had been looking like a modest GB track and field medal haul earlier in the week by sprinting to silver in the men's 4x100m relay. For a moment gold had looked in touching distance for Mitchell-Blake, only for Italy's Filippo Tortu to snatch the victory at the line with an outstanding anchor leg. (Left to right) Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake, Eichard Kilty, CJ Ujah and Zharnel Hughes celebrate their silver medal Ethan Hayter and Matt Walls - men's madison The British duo's success in the madison followed Katie Archibald and Laura Kenny winning gold in the women's madison event. It gives Walls his second medal of the Games after his omnium gold, and a first medal for his housemate Hayter, part of the team pursuit squad that finished seventh BRONZE Chelsie Giles - women's -52kg judo Olympic debutante Chelsie Giles kicked things off with Great Britain's first medal as she sealed bronze in the women's -52kg judo event. Great Britain's Chelsie Giles receives her bronze medal (AP) Bianca Walkden - women's taekwondo +67kg There was heartbreak for Bianca Walkden as she missed out on a place in the final of the +67kg women's taekwondo in the last second of her semi against South Korea's Dabin Lee, who landed a decisive three-point head-kick to progress to the gold medal matchup. Walkden re-composed herself to return later in the day and fend off Poland's Aleksandra Kowalczuk for her second successive Olympic bronze. Great Britain's Bianca Walkden celebrates after defeating Poland's Aleksandra Kowalczuk to claim a bronze medal Alice Kinsella, Amelie Morgan and Jennifer and Jessica Gadirova - gymnastics women's team As the focus was on the Russian Olympic Committee's battle for gold with a Simone Biles-less USA, the British quartet of Alice Kinsella, Amelia Morgan and 16-year-old twins Jennifer and Gadirova dislodged Italy in third place to win a famous bronze medal, Great Britain's first in the women's team event since 1928. Twitter Due to your consent preferences, you’re not able to view this Privacy Options Carl Hester, Charlotte Fry and Charlotte Dujardin - team dressage Charlotte Dujardin equalled Dame Katherine Grainger in becoming Britain's most decorated female Olympian of all time as she collected medal number five by winning bronze in the dressage alongside Carl Hester and Charlotte Fry. Twitter Due to your consent preferences, you’re not able to view this Privacy Options Charlotte Dujardin - individual dressage After success in the team event, Dujardin and her horse Gio teamed up to break up Germany's hopes of sweeping the podium - they took bronze and with it gave Dujardin a sixth Olympian medal to become Britain's most decorated female Olympian of all time. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Ben Ransom says Charlotte Dujardin had to strike up a partnership with a new horse to win her sixth Olympic medal and become Britain's most-decorated female Olympian Ben Ransom says Charlotte Dujardin had to strike up a partnership with a new horse to win her sixth Olympic medal and become Britain's most-decorated female Olympian Matthew Coward-Holley - men's trap shooting World champion Matthew Coward-Holley was forced to settle for bronze after finishing on 33/40 as he lost out to the Czech pair of Jiri Liptak and David Kostelecky. Great Britain's Matthew Coward-Holley on his way to the bronze medal in the trap shooting men's final at the Tokyo Olympics Bryony Page - women's trampoline Bryony Page followed up her silver medal at Rio 2016 by winning bronze in the women's trampoline, producing a score of 55.735 to guarantee a medal before dropping into third following the final performances of Zhu Xueying and Liu Lingling. Page was among those to benefit from the delay of the Games having endured a gruelling recovery from surgery on a long-term ankle issue. Bryony Page won a bronze medal for Team GB, her second successive Olympic medal Luke Greenbank - men's 200m backstroke The swimming dominance continued for Team GB thanks to Luke Greenbank, who took bronze in the men's 200m backstroke after qualifying second fastest to reach the final. Greenbank raises the Union Jack flag and collects the bronze medal following the men's 200m backstroke final Josh Bugajski, Jacob Dawson, Tom George, Mohamed Sbihi, Charles Elwes, Oliver Wynne-Griffith, James Rudkin and Tom Ford - men's eight Team GB's second medal of the Olympics rowing regatta came courtesy of Josh Bugajski, Jacob Dawson, Tom George, Mohamed Sbihi, Charles Elwes, Oliver Wynne-Griffith, James Rudkin and Tom Ford in the men's eight as they secured bronze behind silver-medalists Germany and gold-medallists New Zealand. Team GB celebrate third in the men's eight Jack Laugher - men's 3m springboard Having won gold and silver at Rio 2016, Jack Laugher added bronze in the men's 3m springboard to his medal haul as he sat behind China's Xie Siyi and Wang Zongyuan at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Jack Laugher says overcoming his own personal difficulties to win a diving bronze medal means more than anything to him and is even better than winning gold at the Rio Games in 2016 Jack Laugher says overcoming his own personal difficulties to win a diving bronze medal means more than anything to him and is even better than winning gold at the Rio Games in 2016 Emma Wilson - windsurfing Emma Wilson started the double-point medal race in second place having won four of the 12 preliminary events, but was overtaken by France's Charline Picon and to leave her with bronze. Britain's Emma Wilson Karriss Artingstall - women's featherweight boxing Karris Artingstall was on the wrong side of a split decision as she lost to Japan's Sena Irie to take bronze in the women's featherweight boxing competition. Karriss Artingstall in action in Tokyo Declan Brooks - men's BMX freestyle Two months after the crash that left him unconscious and his Olympic hopes in jeopardy, Declan Brooks' 90.80 second run was enough for bronze in the men's BMX freestyle. Declan Brooks of Britain competes in the men's BMX freestyle final Mno Brown - women's park skateboarding 13-year-old Mno Brown was already Britain's youngest athlete at the Olympics and made history again by becoming GB's youngest-ever medallist. And if that wasn't enough, the skateboarder defied the odds after coming back from a fractured skull and broken bones last year to make it to the Games and she also recovered well after falling in her first two runs during the final. Great Britain's Mno Brown won an unprecedented bronze in the women's park skateboarding final Frazer Clarke - men's boxing A cut to Frazer Clarke's eye curtailed his bout with No 1 seed Bakhodir Jalolov of Uzbekistan, who was awarded the win in the men's super-heavyweight semi-final as Clarke took home an impressive bronze. A cut ended Frazer Clarke's hopes of a gold or silver medal Liam Heath - men's K1 200m canoe sprint Defending champion Liam Heath continued his streak of winning medals at three consecutive Olympics after earning bronze in the men's K1 200m canoe sprint as the most successful British paddler of all time with his fourth Games podium. Liam Heath collects his bronze medal on the podium after finishing third in the men's 200m canoe sprint final Holly Bradshaw - women's pole vault A clearance of 4.85m saw Holly Bradshaw win the first Olympic medal in pole vault in British history as she took bronze behind ROC's Anzhelika Sidorova and USA gold medal winner Katie Nageotte. Holly Bradshaw won bronze in the pole vault Women's hockey team - women's hockey It may not have been another gold for the Rio 2016 champions, but GB's women's hockey team would not be denied a medal as they edged India 4-3 in a thriller to clinch bronze. In doing so they earned Great Britain's 52nd medal in Tokyo to surpass the 51 won in Beijing in 2008. Great Britain's women's hockey team celebrate their bronze medal Jack Carlin - men's sprint cycling Jack Carlin added to the silver he won in the team event by seeing off former world champion Denis Dmitriev of the Russian Olympic Committee to get his hands on bronze in the men's sprint event. Jack Carlin of Team GB Dina Asher-Smith, Daryll Neita, Asha Philip, Imani-Lara Lansiquot - women's 4x100m relay Asha Philip, Imani-Lara Lansiquot, Daryll Neita and Dina Asher-Smith weathered some nervy change-overs to win bronze in the women's 4x100m relay, the latter overcoming her injury woes earlier in the Games to put in a superb penultimate leg on the bend. Dina Asher-Smith, Daryll Neita, Asha Philip and Imani-Lara Lansiquot celebrate their bronze medal Tom Daley - men's 10m platform diving Daley secured his second medal of the games and his first individual Olympic medal since he won bronze at London 2012 following a superb series of dives. The medal marked a remarkable Games for Daley, who did not even know if he would be in Tokyo after tearing his meniscus and having knee surgery at the end of May. ALSO SEE: * Hodgkinson wins 800m silver with new British record * Belarus Olympian 'faced punishment' on forced return home * Biles wins bronze in beam final * Jason Kenny claims GB record-equalling eighth Olympic medal Josh Kerr - men's 1500m Josh Kerr produced a personal-best time in the final to win a bronze medal in the 1500m. Kerr is the first British man to win a medal in the middle-distance event at the Olympics since 1988. Fellow Team GB athletes Jake Heyward and Jake Wightman finished the final in ninth and 10th respectively. Josh Kerr was elated after winning bronze and spent moments just taking it all in inside the Olympic Stadium Mary Rand: Team GB's original Olympics golden girl Mary Rand was once the golden girl of British athletics, winner of the first track and field gold medal by a British female athlete at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and still the only woman to win three track and field medals at the same Olympic Games. Mary took top spot in the long jump with a world-record leap of 6.76m, then landed pentathlon silver and 4x100m relay bronze. Almost 60 years later we tracked down the former darling of British athletics, to her home in Reno Nevada to get her thoughts and memories of those historic games. Now aged 83, Mary told us about how it all started for her in athletics. "I was always a tomboy," Mary tells Mno Sports. "I always followed my brothers, and I think started out running around an orchard in Wells, Somerset. I eventually went to the All England Schools, that's as far as you can go. I got a scholarship to Millfield and when I went there I had a coach, and the rest is history." Mary's passion and natural ability for athletics is clear, and looking back on her achievement of becoming the first British woman to win an Olympic gold medal, she modestly says: "I was doing something I really loved to do and I was fortunate enough to meet really good people along the way who really helped me. When I won I couldn't quite believe it really because at that point I had a daughter that was two years old." Rand came away from Tokyo with three Olympic medals Things, however, were not that simple for the Somerset native. At the 1960 Games in Rome four years earlier, a disappointing Olympics saw her return to England to newspaper headlines which read 'Flop, flop, flop'. Not discouraged by those past headlines, Mary, then 24 and a mother to two-year-old daughter Alison, was determined to put it right in Japan. Mary recalls the day of her historic jump clearly. "The morning that I was going to compete I was sharing a room with Anne Packer, Mary Peters and Pat Nutting and hailstones were coming down. I looked out and went, 'oh my lord it's hailing', but then I thought to myself, 'well, it's the same for everybody, they've all got to compete in it'. I was very fortunate that I qualified with my first jump so I could go right back in and stay out of the rain." Rand tries on a pair of FCA (Cuban Athletics Federation) earrings in 1965 Fortunate with the weather maybe, but there was no fortune with her jumping in that final in Tokyo. Five of Mary's six jumps broke the Olympic record but, as she recalls, records were the last thing on her mind. "You don't really think about anything except what you're going to do. You're hoping you're going to run down the runway and hit that little board at the end and get a good jump," she adds. Well, Mary did that and more and no one in the stadium was more surprised that she broke the world record than she was. "When I came back and I had jumped the world record, I couldn't understand it because it was in metres and back then we didn't do metres. When it went up on the board it said 6.76m and underneath it said 'world record'. "I was blown away," Mary chuckles to herself at her recollection of the moment. Gold in the long jump was to be the pinnacle of Mary's achievements in Tokyo but she also ended up coming home with a silver in the pentathlon and a bronze in the 4x100m relay. Her medals are kept at her old school and that is where Mary thinks they belong. "They're at Millfield in Somerset, they got a big display case and it's really nice. I think that's where they belong because it is part of history and it might inspire young athletes when they see that to do better." Rand competing in the long jump at White City Mary's achievements are even more remarkable when put into context. There were no million-pound contracts, she did not have the carefully-selected diets and use of cutting-edge equipment that athletes have today; she was just like any other 'working mum'. Mary worked eight hours a day at a Guinness factory and cheekily says it was a half pint of the well-known stout that was the secret of her success. "I really went there because they would give me time off when I had an international meet and they also paid me my salary when I was away. I was lucky! Guinness was amazing to me. Every lunchtime I had half a Guinness." Rand posing at a photoshoot in 1969 Mary was a trailblazer in the sixties. She was one of the icons that made London the place to be in that decade - one journalist described her as 'Marilyn Monroe on spikes'. She was not only the darling of the print media but also mixed with pop royalty. Mick Jagger even said she was his dream date. Sitting in her home she remembers that time with fondness. "I was at the BBC one day and the Beatles were there. I met two of them, Ringo and George I think, And then Mick Jagger, I never actually met him, but they asked him if he could go on a date with anybody and he said it would be me. I don't know if that was good or bad but anyway that's what he said". Jagger, like the rest of the nation, was captivated by Mary, a pathfinder for women's sport in this country. She was feted for her athletic achievements and won the Sports Personality of the Year award in 1964. Rand competes at the Southern Counties Women's Athletics Championships "At the time I didn't know what affect it would have, but I think what you would hope for is that when you do something like that, it's going to inspire young athletes to want to train and do well. And also to think, 'she did it so there is no reason that we can't do that'." Max Whitlock: Three-time Olympic gold medallist to retire from gymnastics after 2024 Paris Games Three-time Olympic gold medallist Max Whitlock has announced he will retire from gymnastics after the Paris 2024 Games. The 31-year-old, who has claimed six Olympic medals in total, is Britain's most successful gymnast. Whitlock has the opportunity to become the first gymnast to win four Olympic medals on the same apparatus when he competes on the pommel horse in Paris. * Adam Peaty qualifies for Paris Olympics with fastest time in world this year * Supercomputer predicts success for Team GB at Paris Olympics * Paris Olympics 2024: All the dates, sports and schedule "This decision now feels right," Whitlock told BBC Breakfast. "Going for my final Olympic Games, it feels very, very strange talking about it and it's almost hard to articulate what it's like. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player After winning gold in Tokyo, Max Whitlock told Mno Sports News that he hoped to compete at the Paris 2024 Games. After winning gold in Tokyo, Max Whitlock told Mno Sports News that he hoped to compete at the Paris 2024 Games. "It's a really nice mindset to be in, to think I'll just give it all I've got." Whitlock rose to prominence by taking two bronze medals on his Olympic debut at London 2012, contributing to the host nation's success in the team event along with individual success on the pommel horse. He would go on to become Britain's first individual Olympic gold medallist in artistic gymnastics by winning both the pommel horse and floor events in Rio de Janeiro four years later, while also earning Team GB a first medal for 108 years in the all-around event as he took bronze. Whitlock then retained his pommel horse title at the delayed Tokyo Games in 2021. AD CONTENT | STREAM MNO SPORTS ON NOW Stream Mno Sports live with no contract on a Month or Day membership on NOW. Instant access to live action from the Premier League, EFL, F1, England Cricket, Tennis and so much more. The Hertfordshire-born athlete has claimed 32 major international medals in total, including three World Championship golds, four European Championship titles and four further triumphs at the Commonwealth Games. Following his latest Olympic triumph in Tokyo, Whitlock took an 18-month break from competing to address mental health struggles. ALSO SEE: * More Sports on Mno * Stream Mno Sports on NOW This summer's Paris Games take place between 26 July and 11 August, with the pommel horse final Whitlock will be targeting scheduled for August 3. AD CONTENT | STREAM MNO SPORTS ON NOW NOW PROMO APRIL 2024 Stream Mno Sports live with no contract on a Month or Day membership on NOW. Instant access to live action from the Premier League, EFL, F1, England Cricket, Tennis and so much more. Olympics 2024: Track and field to become first sport to introduce prize money at Paris Games Track and field is set to become the first sport to introduce prize money at the Olympics, with World Athletics saying on Wednesday it would pay $50,000 (£39,400) to gold medallists in Paris. The governing body of athletics said it was setting aside $2.4m (£1.9m) to pay the gold medallists across the 48 events on the track and field program for this year's Paris Olympics. Relay teams will split the $50,000 between their members. Payments for silver and bronze medallists are planned to start from the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. * British gymnastics great Max Whitlock to retire after Paris Olympics * Adam Peaty qualifies for Paris Olympics with fastest time in world this year * Paris Olympics 2024: All the dates, sports and schedule World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said in a statement: "While it is impossible to put a marketable value on winning an Olympic medal, or on the commitment and focus it takes to even represent your country at an Olympic Games, I think it is important we start somewhere and make sure some of the revenues generated by our athletes at the Olympic Games are directly returned to those who make the Games the global spectacle that it is." Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player A supercomputer is predicting success for Team GB at this summer's Olympic Games in Paris - but can they deliver? A supercomputer is predicting success for Team GB at this summer's Olympic Games in Paris - but can they deliver? The prize money will come out of the share of Olympic revenue that the IOC distributes to World Athletics and other governing bodies of individual sports. Athletes will have to pass "the usual anti-doping procedures" at the event before they receive the money, World Athletics added. The modern Olympics originated as an amateur sports event and the International Olympic Committee does not award prize money. However, many medallists receive payments from their countries' governments, national sports bodies or from sponsors. AD CONTENT | STREAM MNO SPORTS ON NOW Stream Mno Sports live with no contract on a Month or Day membership on NOW. Instant access to live action from the Premier League, EFL, F1, England Cricket, Tennis and so much more. The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee awarded $37,500 ($29,500) to gold medallists at the last Summer Games in Tokyo in 2021. Singapore's National Olympic Council promises $1m (£790,000) for Olympic gold, a feat only achieved once so far by a Singaporean competitor. The move by World Athletics could be seen as an indicator of Coe's intentions for the Olympics as a whole if he makes a run for the IOC presidency. ALSO SEE: * More Sports on Mno * Stream Mno Sports on NOW "I haven't ruled it in, and I certainly haven't ruled it out," Coe said last year when asked whether he would consider running for the IOC's top post when Thomas Bach's term ends in 2025. The IOC typically disapproves of any public campaigning for the presidency. AD CONTENT | STREAM MNO SPORTS ON NOW Stream Mno Sports live with no contract on a Month or Day membership on NOW. Instant access to live action from the Premier League, EFL, F1, England Cricket, Tennis and so much more. Olympics 2024: Sir Steve Redgrave criticises World Athletics' move to give prize-money to gold medallists Five-time Olympic rowing champion Sir Steve Redgrave has described World Athletics' decision to give prize money to Olympic gold medallists as unfair to other sports that cannot afford to do the same. Athletics became the first sport to offer prize money to Olympic champions when WA President Sebastian Coe announced on Wednesday that gold medallists in Paris this year will each earn $50,000 (£39,957). The announcement was met with a positive reaction from the world's leading athletes, with the $2.4 million prize pot to be split among the 48 gold medallists in Paris. * Track and field to introduce prize money at Paris Olympics * British gymnastics great Max Whitlock to retire after Paris Olympics * Adam Peaty qualifies for Paris Olympics with fastest time in world this year * Paris Olympics 2024: All the dates, sports and schedule A total of $540m was allocated to the 28 sports at the Tokyo Games with World Athletics receiving the most at $40m. Redgrave, who won five successive Olympic gold medals between 1984 and 2000, said the prize money plan would turn the Olympics into a "two-tier" system. "If you win an Olympic gold medal in any athletics event, you are able to earn substantial financial gains from those results," the 62-year-old told the Daily Mail in an interview. "It smacks a bit hard for the sports that can't afford to do this. Rowing is in that situation. "We struggle bringing sponsorship and finance into it. This separates the elite sports to the others like rowing, canoeing and most combat sports. "They just don't have the same funding that there is in World Athletics. I would prefer that the money they're putting in to be helping more of the grassroots of their own sports or helping other Olympic sports to be able to be at the same level on the same footprint." ALSO SEE: * Stream Mno Sports on NOW * Latest news ahead of Paris 2024 Redgrave added: "Most of the other sports won't be able to follow this. You're making this into a two-tier process. This is to me the wrong direction." AD CONTENT | STREAM MNO SPORTS ON NOW Stream Mno Sports live with no contract on a Month or Day membership on NOW. Instant access to live action from the Premier League, EFL, F1, England Cricket, Tennis and so much more. Gabby Thomas: Olympic 200m sprinter says world record could go in Paris, reveals imposter syndrome, and a passion for public health career Gabby Thomas speaks about her dreams of winning Olympic gold, her degree at Harvard, and having imposter syndrome... Thomas is a sprinter with international medals but this summer she goes for Olympic gold in the 200m where many predict the world record will be broken. In an exclusive interview with Mno Sports News she discusses her ambitions, overcoming imposter syndrome, advice to young girls worried about body image, and her two degrees that open up a medical career to help those in need. For now, her focus is on the Paris Olympics this summer in Paris and performing at her best. She faces formidable competition with Jamaica's Shericka Jackson part of a group of women who are confident of ending on the podium and running frighteningly quick times. * Women pro gamers: The shocking statistical anomaly * Real Talk: Why more needs to be done to protect women while exercising * Steve Redgrave blasts prize money for athletics at Olympics Thomas said: "Everybody wants a gold medal. A gold medal would be great and that's the pinnacle and the peak of athletics. But for me it's really about doing my best and putting on a performance that I can be proud of and knowing that I worked hard. American sprinter Thomas says she is a gold medal contender at the Paris Olympics "When I came back from Tokyo Olympics with a bronze medal and a silver, I was very happy with that. I would have been happy ending my career there. It's really all the outward talk and chatter that you hear that makes you want that gold medal. You're like, Dang, well I really got to go get that! "But it wasn't about that for me. It was about the fact that I put on a performance that I was proud of, and that was my best season to date. If I can go and replicate that in Paris I'll be really happy. Hopefully that ends up with a gold medal." '200M OLYMPIC FINAL WILL BE INTENSE AND HISTORIC' In Tokyo, Thomas finished third in the 200m final to win Olympic bronze, in a race won by Elaine Thompson-Herah. Christine Nboma won silver. At the 2023 World Championships in Budapest she won silver in the 200m finishing behind Shericka Jackson while her fellow American Sha'Carri Richardson took bronze. This time the women's 200m will be one of the highlights in Paris. Thomas explained why she believes it will be a "special night." She told Mno Sports News' Olympics correspondent Geraint Hughes: "The 200m is so exciting on the women's side, because we're running times that just have not been run before since Flo Jo (Florence Griffith Joyner holds the world record of 21.34 seconds). Thomas believes the 200m Olympic final in Paris will be a historic race "Flo Jo was an anomaly in herself. So the fact that we have a few of us women doing that and doing such special things in that event. "Shericka Jackson, Elaine Thompson-Herah, me, Sha'Carri Richardson and if Christine Mboma comes back, it's going to be a very intense and historic race. But we're all pushing each other to that level which is really special." US sprinter Florence Griffith Joyner holds the world record in the 200m of 21.34 seconds which Thomas and other athletes are trying to beat Thomas' fastest time in the event is 21.60 seconds which she ran nine months ago at the 2023 USATF Outdoor Championships. Jackson ran 21.41 seconds in the World Championships last year while Thompson-Herah's time of 21.53 seconds in 2021 is also not far away from Joyner's fastest time ever. So, with the depth of talent will the world record go? "It's got to go," Thomas says, speaking from her training base in Texas. "I personally think with the right conditions, you can't control for weather or the type of track you're running on. But given the weather and the track, I think … yeah, that's going to be a really, really special event to watch." Gold medallist Elaine Thompson-Herah, centre, with silver medallist Christine Mboma and bronze medallist Thomas after the final of the women's 200m at the 2020 Summer Olympics IMPOSTER SYNDROME ON THE TRACK AND AT HARVARD Thomas is a twin and her twin brother is called Andrew. She showed interest in football (soccer) at an early age but she also excelled in her studies which helped her get admission to Harvard which is where she focused fully on athletics. Last month Thomas, who is 28, said on the social media site X: "Imposter syndrome is something I've always struggled with." Twitter Due to your consent preferences, you’re not able to view this Privacy Options Though the admission might surprise many, Thomas explained why she made the online comments. "I haven't always been a star, right? And every time I enter a new space, I'm challenging myself and putting myself in a space that I'm not comfortable with. "So when it comes to track and field I moved to Austin, Texas to train with Olympians. When I moved here, I was not an Olympian. "I wasn't even close to an Olympian. Nobody was talking about me making the Olympic team. So when I moved down here and told people, 'I'm training for the Olympics', I felt like an imposter. "I had never made a U.S. team before. And so I had to work and fill that gap. And I ended up filling it. "And now I am an Olympian, an Olympic medallist, and a gold medal contender. But I wasn't always. And I had to force myself to be in that space. "Same with going to Harvard. I was not the best student in high school. I didn't know what it was going to take to be a doctor or do neurobiology. "But I was in a room with the best students literally in the world. So, of course I felt like I didn't belong there. But I kept working and forced myself to be in that space until I did feel like I belonged there." Thomas celebrates after winning the final in the women's 200m at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials in Eugene in 2021 She will have the support of her old university as she tries to become the first Harvard graduate to win an Olympic gold medal in track and field. Not content with graduating from Harvard with a special focus on public health during her degree in neurobiology, Thomas had running and studying in her sights when she moved to Texas in 2019. "Part of why I moved to Austin, Texas, was to get my master's in public health with a concentration in epidemiology. And so that's where I saw myself," she said. Thomas poses with event mascot Youhuu after taking silver in the women's 200m final at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest last year When Thomas moved there, she wasn't sure she would make the Olympic team so had alternative plans to get a master's, do a fellowship at a hospital and then work her way up to be a hospital CEO. She said: "Right now I'm still running and I will be running for the foreseeable future. But you never know where you'll be in five years time, seven years, 10 years. So I'd love to continue that. Right now I have my master's. I finished about a year ago so I have a master's in public health. "And I work at a healthcare clinic here in Austin that provides healthcare to people who don't have health insurance. So staying in the space, still making a difference. And I would definitely like to continue that after I retire from running." Twitter Due to your consent preferences, you’re not able to view this Privacy Options 'REALLY SAD IF BODY IMAGE WORRIES STOP GIRLS PLAYING SPORT' In 2022 for Women's History Month, Thomas spoke about the misconceptions she was told about her body when she was an athlete. She told WHOOP how her outlook on body image had changed during her athletics career and revealed her own insecurities, hoping it will allow others to overcome similar barriers. She said: "Sports provide so many opportunities for women and especially younger girls in the younger generation. And when they're not encouraged to continue or they feel, you know, less than for continuing sports, especially due to body image, it's really sad. YouTube Due to your consent preferences, you’re not able to view this Privacy Options "It's unfortunate that society just has us in this place where you have to even worry about that. I used to think about it when I was younger all the time too, just how I would look and what sports would do to my body and just afraid of being judged for doing it. "But it's provided so much for me and I've gained so much because of sports. I've gained community, I've gained education, I've gained personal growth. So I would hate to see any type of younger girl lose out on those opportunities." GOODBYE TO 'LEGEND AND MENTOR' SHELLY-ANN FRASER-PRYCE Although Thomas is planning to run for many more years, the 2024 Olympics will be an emotional farewell for Jamaican Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce. The three-time Olympic champion announced she would stop after Paris because she owed it to her family. The Jamaican was the first 100m sprinter to win individual medals in four consecutive Olympic Games. "Shelley is a legend and such a kind athlete too," said Thomas. "It's not common that you have athletes that you're actively competing against, especially on the women's side, who are so kind and open to mentorship, and she is. "She just illuminates this kindness and happiness and positive energy. She's been my idol growing up, and I remember in my 200m Olympic final in Tokyo, it was me and her for that bronze medal. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, of Jamaica anchors her team to win a Women's 4x100-meters relay heat during the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, Friday, Aug. 25, 2023. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek) "I remember fighting tooth and nail to the end of the line and not even knowing if I had medalled or if Shelley had gotten it. Thankfully, I did. Shelley came right behind me and forth, and she was so happy for me. "She has such a long, incredible career that she has nothing left to prove. She can just be happy for everyone. It's so admirable. You can go on and on about her, even just coming back from motherhood and better than ever. It's an unreal career." Thomas says with almost 100 days to go the excitement will now start to build. Especially as the Olympics are in Paris and for many, including her, it will be the first with supporters after Tokyo was affected by the coronavirus. "It's an Olympic year and a lot of the buzz is starting to come out. When we're 100 days out, everyone's getting really excited. So you get really motivated." Thomas celebrates after their gold medal win in the Women's 4x100m relay final during last year's World Athletics Championships Before that there is qualification for the Olympics which she describes as "cutthroat" and a "mental battle". "There are so many of us who want to be on that Olympic team especially in track and field," she adds. "It's a hard team to make. It's cutthroat. "[Qualification] is late. It's close to the Olympics. So we have all season think about that qualification process. In my opinion, it's the fairest way to do it, but it's definitely a mental battle. ALSO SEE: * Redgrave blasts athletics prize money at Olympics * Wyomia Tyus: The story history forgot * Kerr confident of winning 1500m gold * Missy Franklin: The five-time gold medallist "So you really need to be ready to make the team, and that's the most important part. I would say that I'm more I would say I'm more nervous for that than the actual Olympics. "This being my second Olympics and being in such good shape and fitness, I'm really looking forward to it." Football World Basketball Hub Olympic Legacy Football World All Celtics-Mavericks: Results from regular-season matchups brief introduction：Mavericks star Luka Doncic logged a triple-double in both games against the Celtics this season, but Boston won the series.• Download the NBA App There’s an old saying about past performances not guaranteeing future results. The Dallas Mavericks hope Celtics-Mavericks: How to watch, what to expect – 2024 NBA Finals brief introduction：Luka Doncic and Jayson Tatum go head to head in the 2024 NBA Finals.One swept, the other swept like gentlemen. It was as if the Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks were eager to get on with this and wanted as much prep time as possible before Game 1 Mavs' Dereck Lively II (neck) status now available for Game 5 brief introduction：Dereck Lively II is averaging 8.5 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game in the playoffs.• Download the NBA AppDallas Mavericks center Dereck Lively II, who sat out Game 4 with a sprained neck, has been upgraded to available for Thursday’ Listed globally300+ Cities，300+articlesFootball Worldblog Basketball Hub All Listed globally300+ Cities，800+positionBasketball HubBall powder Olympic Legacy All Listed globally300+ Cities，300+HomeOlympic Legacyinstitutions SPORTS ENCYCLOPEDIA EncyclopediaSports Encyclopedia is a compilation of detailed information on various sports, including their rules, history, and cultural significance, serving as a comprehensive guide for sports enthusiasts and researchers. WC BasketNews GM survey 2022: best EuroLeague signing & next NBA player / News - Basketnews.comDay after El Classico: secrets behind Llull's Magic & Saras-Matteo chess battle / News - Basketnews.comDid Olympiacos Need Brazdeikis & Worst/Best EuroLeague Contracts (URBONUS) / News - Basketnews.comG League docuseries 'The Break' spotlighting unique paths to NBAExamining Josh Giddey's rising aggressionHoopHall Highlights: Top performances from Saturday's actionHoopHall Highlights: Top performances from Sunday's actionHoopHall Highlights: Top performances from Monday's actionDetailing the NBA's stat-tracking process with Neema Djavadzadeh UCL Houston men's back at No. 1 as Northwestern makes AP Top 25 debutHouston, Alabama top men's AP Top 25; Marquette climbing, Pitt in2023 NCAA Tournament: Men's field of 68 teams announcedMarch Madness: 6 backcourts worth watching in 2023 Men's NCAA TourneyMarch Madness: Ranking the top-11 men's NCAA Tournament buzzer-beatersAlabama, Houston top men's final AP Top 25 ahead of March MadnessRanking the NBA's top-5 young cores entering the 2023-24 seasonHouston men's back at No. 1 as Northwestern makes AP Top 25 debutHouston, Alabama top men's AP Top 25; Marquette climbing, Pitt in CL Ranking TOP 8 EuroBasket Teams: Why We Put Slovenia Over Serbia & Greece (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comUnacceptable Usage of Jokic & Different Giannis (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comWhat If For Wembanyama, Olympiacos Heroes & TOP 50 Players’ Ranking Reaction (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comBasketNews GM survey 2022: best EuroLeague signing & next NBA player / News - Basketnews.comStart of BN+, Dubai Rumors & EuroLeague GOAT (URBONUS Q&A) / News - Basketnews.comBasketNews GM survey 2022: new EuroLeague format & first task for Bodiroga / News - Basketnews.comBasketNews GM survey 2022: surprising champion prediction & clear MVP pick / News - Basketnews.comBasketNews GM survey 2022: No. 1 EuroLeague draft pick & snubbed Efes / News - Basketnews.comUnfair Superstars & The Rule Change EuroLeague Really Needs (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.com EC Ranking TOP 8 EuroBasket Teams: Why We Put Slovenia Over Serbia & Greece (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comGiannis vs. Jokic & EuroBasket 2022 Draft (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comTurkey Scandal & Giannis in Pole Position (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comMacho Doncic, Happy Jokic & Ataman Leaving EuroBasket (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comUnacceptable Usage of Jokic & Different Giannis (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comLesson for Luka & Giannis Wall (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comMVP Schroder & Noise Around Lorenzo Brown (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comRobbed MVP, FIBA lies, Ranking Luka, Giannis & Jokic (URBONUS) / News - Basketnews.comEuroLeague Power Rankings: Final Four Locks & Partizan in Playoffs? (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.com PL Ranking TOP 8 EuroBasket Teams: Why We Put Slovenia Over Serbia & Greece (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comGiannis vs. Jokic & EuroBasket 2022 Draft (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comTurkey Scandal & Giannis in Pole Position (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comMacho Doncic, Happy Jokic & Ataman Leaving EuroBasket (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comUnacceptable Usage of Jokic & Different Giannis (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comLesson for Luka & Giannis Wall (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comMVP Schroder & Noise Around Lorenzo Brown (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comRobbed MVP, FIBA lies, Ranking Luka, Giannis & Jokic (URBONUS) / News - Basketnews.comEuroLeague Power Rankings: Final Four Locks & Partizan in Playoffs? (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.com LL Ranking TOP 8 EuroBasket Teams: Why We Put Slovenia Over Serbia & Greece (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comGiannis vs. Jokic & EuroBasket 2022 Draft (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comTurkey Scandal & Giannis in Pole Position (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comMacho Doncic, Happy Jokic & Ataman Leaving EuroBasket (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comUnacceptable Usage of Jokic & Different Giannis (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comLesson for Luka & Giannis Wall (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comMVP Schroder & Noise Around Lorenzo Brown (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comRobbed MVP, FIBA lies, Ranking Luka, Giannis & Jokic (URBONUS) / News - Basketnews.comEuroLeague Power Rankings: Final Four Locks & Partizan in Playoffs? (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.com SA Giannis vs. Jokic & EuroBasket 2022 Draft (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comUnacceptable Usage of Jokic & Different Giannis (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comLesson for Luka & Giannis Wall (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comBasketNews GM survey 2022: best EuroLeague signing & next NBA player / News - Basketnews.comStart of BN+, Dubai Rumors & EuroLeague GOAT (URBONUS Q&A) / News - Basketnews.comBasketNews GM survey 2022: new EuroLeague format & first task for Bodiroga / News - Basketnews.comBasketNews GM survey 2022: surprising champion prediction & clear MVP pick / News - Basketnews.comBasketNews GM survey 2022: No. 1 EuroLeague draft pick & snubbed Efes / News - Basketnews.comMarkus Howard & Michale Kyser get into a conflict, two players ejected / News - Basketnews.com BL Turkey Scandal & Giannis in Pole Position (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comUnacceptable Usage of Jokic & Different Giannis (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comEuroLeague Power Rankings: Final Four Locks & Partizan in Playoffs? (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comWhat If For Wembanyama, Olympiacos Heroes & TOP 50 Players’ Ranking Reaction (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comBasketNews GM survey 2022: best EuroLeague signing & next NBA player / News - Basketnews.comBasketNews GM survey 2022: new EuroLeague format & first task for Bodiroga / News - Basketnews.comBasketNews GM survey 2022: surprising champion prediction & clear MVP pick / News - Basketnews.comBasketNews GM survey 2022: No. 1 EuroLeague draft pick & snubbed Efes / News - Basketnews.comUnfair Superstars & The Rule Change EuroLeague Really Needs (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.com AC Ranking TOP 8 EuroBasket Teams: Why We Put Slovenia Over Serbia & Greece (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comGiannis vs. Jokic & EuroBasket 2022 Draft (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comTurkey Scandal & Giannis in Pole Position (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comMacho Doncic, Happy Jokic & Ataman Leaving EuroBasket (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comUnacceptable Usage of Jokic & Different Giannis (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comLesson for Luka & Giannis Wall (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comMVP Schroder & Noise Around Lorenzo Brown (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.comRobbed MVP, FIBA lies, Ranking Luka, Giannis & Jokic (URBONUS) / News - Basketnews.comEuroLeague Power Rankings: Final Four Locks & Partizan in Playoffs? (URBONUS podcast) / News - Basketnews.com Link QQM Football World recommendationOlympic Legacy recommendationFootball World recommendationBasketball Hub Popular keywords Olympics: Great Britain secure four of five relay event places for this summer's Games in Paris Paris 2024 Olympics: Tom Daley to lead Team GB divers at fifth games LeBron James, Steph Curry and Kevin Durant named on USA basketball team for Paris 2024 Olympics Tokyo Olympics: Team GB's medal winners Olympics 2024: Paris schedule, sports, dates, opening ceremony and latest on Russian athletes Olympics 2024: Sir Steve Redgrave criticises World Athletics' move to give prize-money to gold medallists Olympics 2024: Track and field to become first sport to introduce prize money at Paris Games Mary Rand: Team GB's original Olympics golden girl Max Whitlock: Three-time Olympic gold medallist to retire from gymnastics after 2024 Paris Games Paris 2024 Olympics: UK-based boxer Cindy Ngamba to represent Refugee Olympics Team Gabby Thomas: Olympic 200m sprinter says world record could go in Paris, reveals imposter syndrome, and a passion for public health career Mno Brown targets Paris 2024 Olympics gold for Great Britain this summer Adam Peaty discusses Michael Phelps comparisons, Gordon Ramsey's influence and attacking his third Olympic Games Open Kieran McKenna explains why he snubbed Man Utd and Chelsea to stay at Ipswich Jude Bellingham compared to World Cup-winning captain after 'surprising' form Sonia Bompastor: What Chelsea fans can expect from Emma Hayes' successor Ludicrous Arsenal contract clause saw club fork out £10k if star played over 20 minutes Kieran McKenna set to snub Man Utd and Chelsea interest to pen new Ipswich deal Chelsea facing fixture chaos after Man Utd denied them place in Europa League Champions League top seeds confirmed as Arsenal face potential nightmare England captain Leah Williamson "feels love ignite" with new Arsenal contract Erik ten Hag told he deserves to be sacked by Man Utd for 'failing too many times' Horry Scale: Daniel Gafford's point-blank putback saves WizardsCeltics-Pacers: Schedule, how to watch, predictions & analysisNikola Jokic scores 40 in Nuggets' Game 5 win over Wolves for 3-2 series leadBulls' Alex Caruso wins 2023-24 NBA Hustle AwardHorry Scale: Max Strus' game-winner sinks the Mavs from 59 feetWemby Watch: Victor Wembanyama in exclusive company with Shaquille O'NealWemby Watch: What we've seen from Victor Wembanyama halfway through 2023-24 seasonWemby Watch: Victor Wembanyama's playmaking leads Spurs to consecutive victories2024 AT&T Slam Dunk: Mac McClung bests Jaylen Brown, repeats as championNBA DraftKings & FanDuel DFS Primer: May 16Sixers' Tyrese Maxey wins 2023-24 NBA Sportsmanship AwardOpen Open texas a&mexico football team lineupfootball games english premier leagueculminatepromotioneachtourcardsplay by play football gamem aggies football schedulexfl football championship gamesec men's basketballare there any football games todaypan am games footballwatch world cup freearmy football schedule2026 world cup organizing committeepac 12 football teamnorthwestern schedule footballuniversity of louisiana football scheduleOpen * Sports News * Championship Clash * Record-Breaking Performance * Stadium Thriller * Gold Rush Continues * Football World * Football Fever Hits the Pitch * World Cup Thriller Unfolds * Champions League Clash * Goal-scoring Spectacle * Tennis Life * Grand Slam Glory * Court Battle Royale * Wimbledon Winners * US Open Thriller * TELL * 8888888 * iOS Android Link * QQM Football World Copyright © QQM Sports SiteMap : QQM Sports Xml Map |QQM Sports V Map | QQM Sports TXT Map | QQM Sports HTML Map 微信扫一扫添加好友